


Masters Degree in the 7 Sins

by Hazmatqueen



Category: Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
Genre: Abuse, Agressive behavior, Attempted Murder, Blood and Injury, Death, Depression, F/M, Friendship, Healing, Kidnapping, Kissing, Love, Making Out, Mental Health Issues, Multi, Not Beta Read, Past Abuse, Poison, Possessive Behavior, Slow Burn, alcohol use, antidote, does CBD count as a drug?, drunk behavior, just for fun, mention of drug use, mention of violence, relationships, shut down
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:02:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 33
Words: 64,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26803345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hazmatqueen/pseuds/Hazmatqueen
Summary: ***SPOILERS IF YOU HAVE NOT PLAYED THE GAME ALL THE WAY THROUGH. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.***Harlow finds herself in devildom and quickly realizes she is over her head. She also learns she has power greater than anyone has known before.Her ex husband Michael is doing his best to find her and keep her in check... but he has to resort to something awful for that.**I will update tags as needed. Please enjoy and be kind!*
Relationships: Asmodeus (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Female Character(s), Beelzebub/Belphegor (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Female Character(s), Leviathan (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Female Character(s), Lucifer (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Female Character(s), Mammon (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Female Character(s), Satan (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 240
Kudos: 249





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic for this fandom. I honestly have no idea where this is going but I thought I would give it a shot. Please be kind! This was not beta read. If anyone has anything to suggest for next chapters I am open, but will ultimately make my own call on where this story goes. I don't know how long it will be but I think it will be ongoing. If you are kind enough to read it, I hope you enjoy it! Thanks for your time!

Harlow stood in her kitchen throwing together a quick lunch. It had been almost a full day since she had last eaten. This was not unusual for her, when she got into a good rhythm with her writing she got lost, sinking deep and losing herself completely in the world she was creating. It was only when she either fell asleep at her computer or got writer's block that she was pulled out of these worlds. So here she was, barefoot, in grey leggings and a loose maroon shirt with an open back, her long brown hair pulled into a messy bun, staring blanking into her fridge with the worst case of writer's block she had ever had. 

She had her ear buds in, she found that listening to music helped her get into different moods and allowed her to get more in touch with the characters she was creating. She was a writer, mostly thrillers and murder mysteries. In past novels she had written bits of romance into each of them but after her divorce 18 months ago she had done her best to avoid writing about love entirely. She knew however, that this is exactly what her character was missing, but she would not allow herself to go down that road. She couldn’t, the thought of love still cut so deeply tears pricked in her green eyes every time she even thought about it. 

The novel she was working on currently focus on a strong female character that was working to solve the murder of her childhood best friend. It was about to take a particularly intense turn. When it came to writing chapters like this one she found inspiration in classic rock music. Highway to Hell came on as she pulled out everything she needed to make a quick turkey sandwich. It was one of her favorite songs as it was, so she danced while she put together her meal. 

She was jamming out, completely unaware of the room changing around her. “No stop sights, speed limit” She sang softly to herself. Now completely unaware of the group of demons standing behind her. Glancing between themselves the demons were not sure what to make of the human standing in front of them. Either she had not noticed she was in a new place, she didn't care that she was there or she was so in shock she had completely lost her mind. Lucifer had warned them that something like that could happen. Taking a human out of their natural environment was sure to come with some risks. 

He waited a few beats hearing the music coming through her ear buds, demons had better hearing than humans. “Fitting” he thought as he recognized the lyrics of the song, but he had had enough of this. As he approached her he noticed a cut out in the back of her shirt that exposed the upper part of the back and showed him a tattoo angel wings. Scowling, he pushed down the memory of his own, real, wings. He tapped her on the shoulder, in order to get her attention. 

Harlow froze, her editor and friend was the only person who had a key to her apartment, but he would never show up unannounced. She gripped the butter knife she was holding a little tighter and popped one of the buds out of her ear. Slowly she turned, and it struck her (finally) that she was not in her kitchen anymore. She wasn’t even in her apartment. She was in what looked like some sort of large, lecture hall. As she turned she carefully kept the knife hidden behind her back. Not that it would do her any good but it was all she had. 

When she was finally face to face, or rather face to chest, with the person who had tapped her on the shoulder her eyes grew wide. When he was sure her attention was fully on him, he took a few steps back. Her eyes stayed locked on his until she saw movement from behind him. Another man stepped up and began speaking to her. 

The man explained that his name was Diavolo and that she had been brought here on an exchange program to help build a better relationship between angels, demons, and humans. The school itself was called RAD. She had to be dreaming she thought to herself as she listened to him speak. He made introductions, the man, or demon, that had gotten her attention was Lucifer. He was also apparently the eldest brother of some of the other demons in the room. He then introduced Satan and Asmodeus. She eyed them closely as they greeted her, she made note to stay away from the avatar of lust, the last thing she needed in her life was any feelings. She said nothing in return. She only watched. When a red headed demon was introduced to her as Beelzebub, he asked her if he could have her sandwich. For being the avatar of gluttony he was not what you would expect. Still saying nothing she moved away from the plate that was sitting on the table behind her. She had lost her appetite entirely, a sick feeling of dread pooling in her stomach as the situation played out before her. 

This would make a good book, Harlow thought. She had to be dreaming. The red haired demon smiled at her as he reached past her and grabbed the plate. Once all of the introductions were done Lucifer handed her a phone, which he called a DDD, and explained how to use it. It looked like a normal phone, she was sure she could figure it out. But what she couldn't figure out was if it was a dream and if it wasn't a dream, how in the world had she ended up in an exchange program, in hell, with the demons claiming to be the avatars of the 7 deadly sins. 

“Now, do you have any questions?” Lucifer asked her. Harlow stared at him for a moment, and looked down at the phone in her hand. Then looked past the phone and noticed her feet. She wouldn't get far but she had to try. Lucifer saw the wheels turning in her head and knew she was contemplating running. He sighed deeply, this had been a bad idea, they should have gone and gotten her from the human world, instead of transporting her here with no warning. He took a step closer to her and placed his hand on the shoulder, he leaned down and whispered in her ear, “I would not run, if I were you. You are staying under my roof, human, and I wish for things to go as smoothly as possible. Lord Diavolo would be so disappointed if his plan to build bridges with the human world were to end so quickly.” He squeezed her shoulder tightly, so tightly in fact it almost hurt. It was a warning and a threat. It was also her answer, this wasn't a dream, dreams don't hurt. 

Her fear set in and her fight or flight response activated. She grabbed his wrist and forced it off of her shoulder. Harlow was surprised at the amount of effort it took, he was strong. He looked at her taken aback. Then he frowned as she pulled out the knife she had been hiding. She made to put distance between them and circled around the other side of the table that she had been leaning against. “S-st-stay away from me.” Harlow stammered keeping her eyes fixed on him. She knew as soon as she looked away from him, he would make a move to disarm her. 

Everyone in the room went quiet. They could all scent the fear coming off of Harlow and they could feel the rage rolling off of Lucifer. He understood she was scared but he did not take kindly to being threatened, even with a butter knife. He tried to school his features into something, that he hoped, would show some sort of kindness, but that failed miserably. His lips twisted into a sneer and a slight growl escaped from Lucifer. That's when she realized that she had pulled a knife on and disobeyed orders from the avatar of pride. She was fucked. 

They all watched the color drain from her face. Harlow didn't know what to do, she just wanted to go home. “Please, please, you have to let me go home.” She had always thought she would be more cunning, more brave if she found herself in a situation like this but instead she was begging, and she hated herself for it. “You can find someone better for this program, really! I am just an author, nothing special, I have nothing I can offer you. My only special talent is that I can wiggle my ears. Please let me go home. I have a deadline I need to meet, I can not be here for a whole year, I can't lose my contract, that's all I have left.” The words flowed out of her as she pleaded with the demon standing before her. She even dropped the knife and clasped her hands together as if she was praying. ‘Coward’ Harlow thought to herself. It was like she was arguing with her ex-husband again, begging him not to go, except this time she was begging to leave. Except now the roles were reversed in a way. She wished she could be like the characters that she wrote in her books, they were always fearless. 

“I don't even remember signing up, or applying for a position at this school. I haven't been in school for 6 years, I can't remember what it is like to even study. I have a degree and everything and have no money to pay for a masters.” Harlow continued her argument to help them see this was a big mistake. “There were 7 billion people on earth, surly someone else would be a better fit.”

Diavolo stepped up at this point, he was handsome and had a much less intimidating aura to him. “I assure you this program is entirely free, and we had a very in depth checklist that our exchange students needed to meet, and you were the one that checked every box on that list.” He walked towards her calm and collected, a warm smile on his face. “Now i know this is a lot to take in but you will be staying with Lucifer and his brothers while you are here. They will help you in your studies and keep you safe while you are here.” He reached out and gently touched your arm. His eyes flicked up above your head, and he continued. “Ah Mammon, you are here.” Harlow turned and saw another male standing in front of the entrance to the room. He was tall, tan and had white hair. “Harlow, this is Mammon. He will take you to the house of lamentation. Now Mammon, I am trusting you to keep her safe, and go easy on her, it appears this transition has not been easy on her.”

The white haired demon threw his hands in the air and spoke, “Yeah yeah, come on human I don't got all day.” With that he began to leave the room. Harlow was speechless, this demon was rude, but she decided he was a better alternative to staying here with Lucifer. Lucifer had seemed to calm down but when she glanced at him there was a lethal gleam in his eyes. Mammon was out of sight but she could hear him call out to her, “Oi, human, hurry up or I’ll let the lesser demons eat ya!” Harlow hurried after him without so much as a goodbye to the rest.

As the door closed behind her the room let out a collective sigh. Satan and Asmo moved to stand next to their older brother. “I like her.” They said in unison. Both for different reasons, but it was a good start to the program Diavolo thought. “I intend on keeping a close eye on her.” Lucifer said. This human was going to need to tread lightly for a while yet with him. “It is going to be an interesting year to say the least.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As her face passed only centimeters away from his he fought every instinct he had to not reach out and grab her. She situated herself again, taking her legs back from Mammon. She sat cross legged now, back straight. She pulled the pen out of her hair that was holding her bun together. Mammon, almost groaned at both the loss of warmth from her legs on her lap and the sight of her long hair tumbling down, cascading over her shoulders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Not beta read*
> 
> I am still not sure where this story is going but I have a feeling there is going to be some slow burn happening. With who, I am not sure, I am just a long for the ride lol 
> 
> Drop a comment if you feel so kind. Thanks for reading if you do!

Harlow sat at the bench in her windowsill. Her nose stuck in a potions book. She had been in devildom for almost 3 weeks now, and had mostly stayed in her room or stuck closely to Mammon while at school. The classes she didn’t have with him she had with the other brothers or the other human exchange student Solomon and the angels Simon and Luke. They were all kind and for the most part acted as guardians as she learned to navigate the school, and because she had no real magic to speak of she felt safer with them around. There was one class though that she only had with Lucifer, and every Tuesday and Thursday at 8:00am she made sure she was in class at 7:45. She had done her best to avoid him, the growl from the first day they met still echoed in her mind. She was actually terrified of him and every time she made eye contact with him (accidentally or on purpose), his eyes were filled with distaste. He did however insist on sitting next to her in that class, which was in fact potions, and she dreaded what would happen if she got anything less than an A on any assignment or test. 

Harlow read, she wasn’t very good at chemistry and had not taken any chem or physic classes since high school. She had been an English major in college and had opted to take an earth science class as her science credit in order to graduate. And to her potions was exactly like chemistry. She was reading about a sleeping draft, thinking that it would be something she should try and make here soon (not having gotten much sleep since being there), when a knock came to the door. She drug her eyes away from the page and said “Who is it?”. Her voice quiet, she wanted to go as unnoticed as possible. She was never sure what to say or what would set one of them off. In her first week of being there she had almost been attacked by the 3rd oldest brother Leviathan, because they had had some competition about TSL, which shockingly, she had read several times in the human world. From that point on Harlow treading even more lightly around the house. She knew she had upset Levi and was now doing her best to be as kind as possible to him. One of the 6 brothers already hated her, she didn’t need another to as well. 

“It's me, the Great Mammon.” He said as he swung open the door. Harlow had learned that he was the avatar of greed and in a way she felt lucky. He could be overbearing at times but he meant well, and was for some reason over protective of her. They had formed a pact but the over protection seemed to start on that first day, on their walk home from RAD. He nudged her legs so he could sit, then grabbed her ankles and placed them on top of his legs. “You’re always studyin’. Every time I come in here your nose is stuck in a book.” Gripping the book he slipped it from her hands. Mammon closed the book and placed it on the other side of him, out of her reach. Harlow groaned “Mammon! I have to, it is the only class i have with Lucifer and we have a quiz tomorrow and if i fail, I am scared he may actually kill me.” He blinked at her, thinking about her words and then replayed, “Nah, he will only string you up by your ankles in the stairwell for a few hours. It's no big deal, he has done it to me plenty of times.” 

Harlow shook her head, “That may sound fine to you, but not to me! I will have you know I graduated summa com laude and was in the top 10 in my graduating class. There is no way I am going to kill my academic career here. I have to study!” She leaned over her legs and grabbed the book he had placed on the other side of him by her feet. She placed a hand on his shoulder as she did so to keep her balance. Mammon stilled at the touch, not that Harlow noticed, she never noticed when her touches sent a warm calm over him, or any of his other brothers. Mammon had first thought that it was part of the pact that they had made during her first week here. The pact that made him believe that she was now part of him. He quickly realized though that he was not the only one, he noticed a change in Beel, Levi, and Satan as well. Asmo also, but he didn't count because he always acted that way around anyone who touched him in any sense of the word. Then there was Lucifer, who she had been deliberately staying away from. 

As her face passed only centimeters away from his he fought every instinct he had to not reach out and grab her. She situated herself again, taking her legs back from Mammon. She sat cross legged now, back straight. She pulled the pen out of her hair that was holding her bun together. Mammon, almost groaned at both the loss of warmth from her legs on her lap and the sight of her long hair tumbling down, cascading over her shoulders. She scribbled in her book, making a note of how lavender would aid in the scent and potency of the sleeping draft, though it wasn’t officially on the list of ingredients. He coughed slightly, and she looked up at him through her lashes, “What is it?” she asked, “Listen, if you are wanting to watch a movie or something, I promise we can do that this weekend. We can have movie night in your room too. I’ll bring the popcorn.” She smiled at him warmly, and very much platonically. 

“Fine, my room but just us! Even if Beel comes sniffing after the popcorn he isn't allowed in, got it?” He conceded to her proposal. 

“We can do our best, now go on, I have to study!” He stood and ruffled her hair, “Alright, Treasure. But remember your promise.” That nickname was new, she thought as she watched him leave her room. She didn't have time to give it too much thought though as she turned her attention back to her book. 

The next morning her DDD alarm went off at 4:45am. She did her morning yoga and showered and got ready for the day. Her school uniform was simple, a gray pleated skirt, a white button up and red tie, or bowtie, depending on the day, and a gray blazer. She was feeling confident about the quiz this morning. She made her way to the kitchen to make some toast with devilberry jam, which tasted a lot like huckleberry, if she had to give it a human world comparison. With the toast in her mouth she dug through her bag that was slung across her body. She was looking for a pen so she could put her hair up. She wasn’t sure when she picked up the habit but she knew it had been sometime in her undergrad, not that this was really a master program but it was the best way she could make it make sense. When she graduated and started writing books she resorted to elastic bands because she rarely hand wrote anything. But here she was at 27, resorting to habits from years ago. 

“If you insist on putting your hair up that way couldn't you find an actual hair pin to use?” A smooth cool voice sounded from the doorway. She looked up, knowing who it was and regretting that he was seeing her in such a disheveled manor. Well not really disheveled to her but more than likely disheveled to him. She had also almost run into him. She stopped rummaging through her bag and took the piece of toast out of her mouth. “Sorry, Lucifer.” She said quietly. She averted her gaze as she made to brush past him. As she did so she did her best to avoid touching him, but he caught her by the arm. Firmly holding her in place he spoke. “I hope you are ready for the quiz today. I expect nothing but your best.” His voice was challenging, questioning her ability to learn and all together prideful in his own abilities. 

Her eyes snapped up to his, if there was one thing she could not stand it was when people questioned her intelligence. “I always bring my A game Lucifer. If I were you, I would be more concerned about my own score and how I am going to heal my pride when a human blows my score out of the water.” She pulled out of his grasp, bringing her pointer finger up and poking it roughly into his chest. “Make no mistake, Lucifer, when I say, I am going to do so well this semester that you are going to wish you had me tutor you.” 

Fire danced in her eyes. He liked this side so much better than the meek, quiet girl who was always too worried about what others thought of her. He understood that she had been terrified of the situation when she was first brought here. Hell, she had locked herself in her bedroom for the first 2 days she was here. He had initially been furious about her threatening him, but after a long conversation with Diavolo he came to his senses, but his damn pride kept him from voicing his forgiveness. This though, this he could work with. Anything, to get her to look at him. Mask on still he said coldly “we shall see.” Gloved hand brushing away hers. She huffed and merely said “See you in class.” With that she walked out of the kitchen, resuming her search for a pen to hold her hair up. He decided that in that moment, if she really were to do better than him at this quiz he would give her a proper hair pin.


	3. Chapter 3

She sat with her head resting on the lunch table. She felt a hand brush her back, she knew it had been meant to be comforting, and it was in a way but she let out an agonizing moan. "What's wrong with Harlow?" She heard Simon ask the other members at the table. He kept his hand on her shoulders as he sat next to her. "She had her first quiz today… I don't think it was what she was expecting." Satan answered. Mammon followed up with, "I think she is broken. The potions professor is known for giving some of the hardest quizzes." 

She felt a poke on her head, she knew it was Mammon but she still didn't move. How was she supposed to know that the quiz was going to be composed of 20 short answers and 3 essay questions. The last of which would give her the antidote to the forgetfulness potion she was given at the start of the class. The professor has also forgotten to adjust her dosage to one for humans so she was under the same influence that the demons were under. There were several moments that she began to forget her own name. And when she mixed the ingredients for the antidote she had almost forgotten one of the key ingredients, or almost forgot what she was doing all together, staring off into space. The after effect of it as well was like waking up with the worst hangover she had ever had, except 10 times worse and left her almost unable to carry herself out of the classroom. She still noticed that she was forgetting things, Lucifer had wordlessly handed her her book bag before heading off to meet Diavolo.

"Was it the forgetfulness quiz you had today?" Satan asked. "The only thing that will help with that is eating, and then lots of rest tonight. Harlow you need to sit up and eat this devil burger. And you have no classes tomorrow, right?" She lifted her head enough to look at him. She winced at the movement. Studying her face he could tell that she had been given too much. Anger flashed through him, Lucifer should have been watching. Lucifer knew some of the staff were not happy about the exchange program. That's why they were in classes with her, to keep her safe. They didn't need to worry about Solomon, he had magic and could hold his own. This must have been deliberate, a way to get rid of the human, Satan thought to himself. Harlow said, "yeah, no classes tomorrow. That's good." It was clear the affects were still in play. "How many classes do you have left today?" Simon asked, noting the way Satan's grip on his fork tightened and the way his mouth formed into a disapproving thin line. Harlow shook her head, "I can't remember… oh God, what if the antidote didn't work? What if I am stuck like this?" Tears rimmed her already bloodshot eyes. 

Satan and Mammon stood at that. "I'm taking you home." They said. The brothers looked at each other and glared. A silent conversation arguing over who was best to take her. "No, I can't miss class." Harlow argued weakly. Simon looked at the two demons and nodded with him in agreement. "I would highly recommend you go home, your next class is with me and the class after that you have with Solomon. I will get the notes for you and have Solomon take notes as well. We will stop by after dinner tonight and get them and the assignments to you." Simon moved his hand away from Harlow's shoulder as Mammon and Satan circled around the lunch table and helped her up from the table. When she was up from her seat Mammon wrapped her arms around his neck from behind and lifted her legs around his hips so that he was giving her a piggyback ride. Satan shrugged off his uniform jacket and wrapped it around her, keeping a hand firmly on her back as they left the cafeteria.   
~  
"What do you mean Professor Collis tried to kill Harlow?" Diavolo set down his pen. Looking up from his paperwork. "He did not adjust the dosage of the forgetfulness potion for her. There is a large amount of ravens root in the potion and that can be toxic, even deadly to humans if given in large enough quantities. I used some of my own powers to try and adjust the effects, but by the end of it you could tell she was fading fast. And her antidote did not work instantly like it did on the rest of the class. She left her book bag and almost didn't recognize Mammon." 

"Is she going to be alright?" Diavolo asked. Lucifer nodded slowly. "I slipped another dosage of the antidote into her bag. I will text Mammon and let him know. He has lunch with her, though I am going to have him take her home. It goes against my best judgment letting him skip astrology and the history of witchcraft, but this is a serious matter." 

"Very good. Lucifer, will you send Collis to my office please." Diavolo said, it was not a question, it was an order. For a split second Lucifer could have sworn he saw Diavolo's demon form flashed. "It shall be done." Lucifer turned on his heel and left the room.  
~  
Mammon heard his phone go off in his bag. Harlow resting her head on his shoulder. They were about half way home but the walk was slow. "Yo, Satan, can you check who that text is from?" 

Satan reached for the pocket on the front of the leather bag and retrieved the phone. He unlocked the screen and saw Lucifer's name. He read the text, it was short and to the point. Satan read it out loud, "Take Harlow home, she has been given too much of the forgetfulness potion. There is another dose of the antidote in her bag. Give it to her in 2 hours." 

Mammon was thrilled, he was getting a free pass and he was glad he and Satan made the call to go home before getting the word from Lucifer. Satan, still furious that Lucifer had let this happen in the first place typed a quick reply. "Does Diavolo know?" He typed out a quick reply. And it didn't take long to get a response. "What sort of question is that? Of course he does." Satan rolled his eyes, and left the message on read.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poison and antidote.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoy this chapter! I'm enjoying writing it! Also, Harlow's favorite movie is the princess bride, if you were interested.

Once they were home, Satan opened the door to Harlow's room and Mammon made his way to her bed. Setting her down gently on the bed he adjusted her so her head was resting on the pillows. Satan took off her shoes and pulled off her knee high socks. Satan made his way to her dresser and pulled out a pair of sweats and rummaged around for a t-shirt of some kind. Finding a faded army green one with the words "Greta Van Fleet" and the stages of the moon on it he made his way back to the bed (some of her things had been brought from the human world at her request).

She made to sit up but she was in more pain than she thought possible. Her vision spun "trash can" she mumbled. Seeing the color of her rosy cheeks turn a slight green, Mammon moved quickly. As soon as he brought it up to her she vomited. He rubbed her back and pushed away a few strands of hair that had fallen out of her bun. 

"Fuck" Satan thought, one of his specialties was potions and this was not a good sign. Even if the additional dose of antidote was given, he wasn't sure it would work. The ravens root was toxic and it could be deadly, but it didn't cause vomiting. However, mixed with the right kind of spider venom, one that added flavor to the potion for demons, could speed and add to the toxins for humans.

She lifted her head and blinked dazedly at both of them. Then her eyes rolled back in her head and she fell backwards into her pillows. Satan moved to sit her back up, tapping lightly on her cheeks. "Low, wake up…" no response, "damn it, Harlow, wake up!" He shook her a little bit harder. "Easy, Satan. I don't think you're supposed to shake humans that hard. "If she doesn't wake up she is going to die." Satan roared, demon form flickering into place. Mammon began to shake her as well. "Treasure, wake up, come on, you have to wake up." 

They were both yelling at her for a few minutes before her eyes fluttered open. A small whimper escaped her lips. Her skin was hot to the touch. Her bedroom door burst open, Levi and Beel stepped into her room. "What's going on, we heard yelling." Beel said. Levi nodded in agreement. Mammon gave him a quick rundown of the events that had transpired that day. 

Satan turned his attention back to Harlow, she was barely keeping her eyes open. He tilted her head so she was looking at him. "Hey Low-low, everything is going to be alright, ok? But I need you to stay awake for me. Can you do that." She nodded slightly, trying not to cry in pain at the movement. "Good girl, I am going to have the others change you into some more comfortable clothes. Is that alright with you?" She nodded again. "No, kitten, I need a real answer from you. Is it alright to change your clothes?" 

"Yes." She said weekly. 

With that he set about giving instructions to his brothers. "Keep her awake, even after you give her her second dose of the antidote. It more than likely won't be enough. If my assumptions are correct, she is going to have to have an antidote for draco-spider venom as well. It isn't toxic to us but it causes vomiting, fever, fainting spells, and potential death when given to humans. When mixed with ravens root it can cause all of those things, memory loss, loss of appetite, intestinal bleeding and heart failure. Combining the two will end in death for humans, a long, painful death... I need to go to the library and find the book for the antidote on this. The effects speed up if the human sleeps. My assumption is she has about 14 hours left if we don't get it to her soon. It takes 6 hours to make the spider anti-venom" 

He continued on instructing them to change her clothes, gently and to keep her hydrated. He left the room, if Diavolo and Lucifer weren't going to punish professor Collis for this, he sure as hell was going to. A cool wave of wrath washed over him, the kind of wrath that made him his most dangerous, but he would indulge in that later.   
~   
The next several hours went by in a blur. Every so often Harlow had moments of clarity. Those moments were excruciating, she remembered being force fed a second dose of antidote, then a third and then an entire mug full of something else. She reminded being changed in to her PJs, she remembered a cold compress being pressed to her head, and she remembered the brothers rotating in and out of her room. And finally, finally, there was some quite. Someone had brought a TV into her room and put on her favorite movie. There was also a gallon of water next to her, along with every snack she could imagine, a copy of Pride and Prejudice, an entire skin care line, a golden bracelet, and a dark blue hairpin, that looked somewhat like a peacock feather.

She must have finally been allowed to sleep. She looked at her DDD and the time read 12:30am. She slowly, moved herself into a sitting position. She was still sore but her mind was clear. She reached for the water and took a huge gulp. Harlow brought her hands to her head making to move her hair over her shoulders, but it had been braded into one long French braid. She then looked down at herself, noting that Satan had picked out her favorite band t-shirt to sleep in. She would have to thank him later for asking for her consent to have them change her clothes. 

She found the remote and turned up the volume a few notches, it was her favorite part of the movie. She glanced over at her desk, noticing a few notebooks, that must have come from Simon and Solomon. She also noticed a hand made card, she assumed came from Luke. She would worry school work later though. 

Picking up her DDD, she created a new group message with all 6 of the brothers included on it. "Hey, thank you all for your help today. Someone is going to have to fill me in on what happened though. My memory is pretty spotty. I hope you all are able to get some good rest tonight. ❤" 

She would have to think of a better thank you for them, wondering if cooking dinner for them for the foreseeable future would be enough. She the sent another thank you text to the boys at purgatory hall. Then she settled back down into her sheets, comfortable and content.  
~  
The brothers sat in the living room in front of the fire place discussion new preventative measures and protection tactics when their DDD went off. Mammon made for it, when a look from Lucifer gave him pause. 

"What are we going to do with Professor Collis?" Satan asked, green eyes glowing with power. His demon form refused to go away until some of his pent up anger was released. 

"We are handling him." Lucifer said simply. Dismissing Satan almost entirely.

"Whatever that means, that's not good enough." Satan argued back. The 4 remaining brothers inched away. Not wanting to get caught in the cross fire of what was no doubt about to turn into a full on brawl. 

"It means, myself and Diavolo are handling it." Lucifer said again. Satan grabbed Lucifer by the collar "he almost killed her… he should get what he gave her and then some." And eye for and eye, Satan believed it was the best and most fair way to handle this sort of thing. Lucifer shoved out of Satan's grasp. Then proceeded to take off his lether gloves. 

His hands were stained dark red, almost black. A metallic tang wofted through the air. He held his hands in front of him. "If the blood on my hands aren't enough to prove to you that we are handling it, I am not sure what else would, they are in the catacombs." 

Lucifers brothers looked at him. They could all smell the intention that the blood carried. The intentions of not one demon but many. Lucifer had spent the afternoon and evening hunting down Collis' accomplices. Soon Satan was not the only one in his demon form. It was a good thing Harlow was sleeping. In the catacombs under the house of lamentation, there was going to be a blood bath.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harlow is feeling better. She and Lucifer talk. She is super bored after being told she can't leave bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is really just set up for the next piece of the story. Im trying to get to the Scavenger hunts at the Demon Lord's castle. I have some fun ideas for that. But there are some pretty significant things that happen before then that I know I should probably cover so people aren't confused. 
> 
> I feel like I'm writing Lucifer a little (ok alot) softer than most have and do but I'm trying. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

The next morning Harlow woke to find that she was no longer alone in her room. Mammon had sprawled across her window seat. Beel was asleep in the armchair next to the fire, surrounded by her uneaten snacks. And Leviathan was sprawled on her couch. She shocked her DDD and saw she had several missed text. 15 to be exact. Most were in response to the group message she sent out to the brothers. Then a few of them had texted her individually. One from Diavolo, one from Barbatos, and a few from the angels and Solomon at purgatory hall. 

All checking on her well being and offering to help however they could. There was one brief one from Satan, telling her to make sure to drink the tea he left in her room. It would help with the recovery and she was to stay in bed until Monday morning. And then the last text, from Lucifer, saying he would be by later that day to explain what had happened.

She swallowed hard. He had never come to her room and for some reason she felt like she was about to be in deep deep trouble. It was ridiculous of course. She hadn't known that this would happen. Though she still wasn't sure what had happened. She wanted to believe that she had just had a bad reaction to the potion. But she had a gut feeling that wasn't the case. 

Harlow sighed and made her way to the bathroom, making sure to not wake her sleeping friends. They all looked terribly exhausted even in their sleep. She closed the door to the bathroom and started her shower. When she stepped into the shower the warm water hit her skin. It sent shivers up her spine. And she let out a gasp. Her skin was sensitive to it for some reason. Maybe because of the fever, she couldn't be sure. There was a knock on the bathroom door, "Harlow, are you doing ok? I heard a Gasp. Ya feeling sick again?" Mammon's voice said. "No, just taking a shower." Then Beels voice called out "We'll be here if you need us for anything. Can I have some of your snacks though? I'm hungry." 

"Sure Beel, I can't finish them by myself anyway." She rolled her eyes. If they were going to be like this every time she got sick, it would drive her crazy. "Oh and tell Levi I have a Raven Feather account with Akuzon, he can watch anime through there if he is wanting to stay and hang out today too." She heard a quiet voice mumble something about "normies" but couldn't hear him over the shower. 

The rest of her shower was peaceful. And she breathed in the scent of the lavender oil she had rubbed into her skin. She dried her hair and put her pjs back on. She emerged from her bathroom and found all 3 of the brothers had gone. They had been replaced with the one brother she still was not sure about. He scanned her up and down before locking eyes with her. "I'm sorry." She said before he could say anything. It was her way of breaking the silence. She wasn't sure why but she felt like she had to say it to him. 

"You have nothing to apologize for, Harlow." There it was, her name. He said her name instead of calling her human. He gestured for her to sit on her couch. Taking the armchair and crossing an ankle over his knee. Then he began to tell her the tale of what had happened yesterday. It took quite some time for her to say anything after he was done talking. "If me being here is a problem, I can go home. I don't wish to cause you all any issues by being here." 

"You being here is not the problem. The problem is there is still quite a bit of intolerance from many demons in the community. But the fact remains that there are more demons out there willing to build bonds with humans and angels than there are who would have those bonds destroyed." 

"Is it safe for me to stay here though? I'm not ready to die, Lucifer. And it sounds like I came pretty close to that yesterday. Hell, it's amazing I am feeling as good as I am now." 

"Solomon put a healing spell on you, he said it would help speed the healing and dull the residual pain." That made sense then, she understood why she was sensitive to the touch, knowing now it would hurt if it hadn't been for the spell. There was a long pause in the conversation. 

"If it helps any, you got full marks on the quiz. Diavolo graded it himself. He is very pleased." Harlow looked at him skeptically. "Are you sure or did he curve that grade because of what happened yesterday?"

"I promise, that is not the case." Lucifer said, genuinely surprised that she would suggest such a thing. She laughed slightly. "Sorry, I was halfway joking." Then another long pause. "Very well,"Lucifer said as he stood. "I will let you rest." 

He crossed her room and hesitated at the door. "I'm glad you are doing better, Harlow." He said before going on. "As for your safety, that hairpin, on your pillow, it has a protection spell on it. Not only are peacocks a symbol of pride but in some cultures they are symbols of safety. The blue jewelry will glow green if you are in any immediate danger, and it will alert myself or one of my brothers. It will keep you safe."

He didn't mention that he had purchased it as a gift before any of this had happened. Not wanting to tell her his true intention on giving it to her was his way of saying sorry for being an ass when they first met. Not wanting to mention that he thought that the blue and green on the head of the pin would compliment her eyes, or mention that he noticed she liked wearing her hair up in that way.

She looked at the ornate pin sitting on her pillow, having not moved it from the night before. Scooping it up she took a moment to take in the details. "Thank you Luc…" she began to say, but when she looked up he was gone.  
~  
After spending most of the weekend in bed, Harlow couldn't stand it anymore. She was bored out of her mind. Harlow had finished the assignment she missed. She had read Pride and Prejudice (for the 700th time.) She was tired of having her meals brought to her where she sat mostly alone, unless Mammon was the one bringing her her food. She needed to get out of her room. She knew Satan had given her instructions to rest, but Harlow just needed to get out, only for a little while. 

She opened her door slightly, peeking into the hallway way. Harlow definitely did not want Satan to catch her, or Lucifer for that matter. They were so similar in their personalities that sometimes she wondered if that was why they hated each other. She didn't want to get punished for not following orders, but damn it if she wasn't hungry, and she was a grown woman. She could still make her own decisions, even in Devildom, right?

When she was sure the coast was clear she slipped out her door. She padded softly down the hall, bare feet cold on the stone floor. She was almost to the kitchen when she heard yelling. From the sounds of it Mammon and Beel were fighting over some sort of desert. Then there was the loudest crash she had ever heard. And then silence, until there was more yelling. 

Satan, Lucifer, Levi, and Asmo all rounded different corners to see what was going on. The former 2 brothers both looked at you standing in the hallway. The look Satan gave you promised retribution for not listening to him. Lucifer's said something similar. Then you heard Mammon yelling, "Beel! What if we crushed her?! We broke down the wall and she isn't in her bed! Oh God we killed her." 

The 4 brothers and Harlow made their way to the kitchen. There was a gaping hole in the wall that separated Harlow's room from the kitchen. Mammon and Beel went back and forth for a minute before realizing they had an audience. "If you two are quite finished, it would appear the victim in question, was not in her room at the time." Lucifer cut in. They looked up to see Harlow. "My room!" She said quietly. 

She took a deep breath trying to stay calm… could she just have one normal week? Just one, where nothing dangerous happened? But here she was, toeing a fine line between life and death, again.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harlow Finds the attic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took me so long to get up! I didn't have much time this week. 
> 
> This story does not follow exactly with the game but there are and will continue to be moments that things are similar. Please let me know what you think! This has not been beta read! 
> 
> Enjoy, be kind and comments are encouraged! I want to know thoughts! 
> 
> Thank you for reading. I am really having fun with this one!

Harlow sat on Beel's bed staring at him… it was a really good thing he normally shared a room with the avatar of sloth. He had to be the only person capable of sleeping though Beels snoring. She had tried ear plugs, covering her head with a pillow, noise machines, sleeping pills, hell, she even tried Devildoms version of CBD (adjusted correctly for human use of course). But legitimately, nothing worked. 

If she didn't get sleep soon she would give Satan a run for his money on the amount of wrath she would release. 

Harlow, however, also had to keep in mind how kind Beelzebub was. He was always offering to share snacks, always wrapping an arm over her shoulders at school. Protective, sweet, stable and strong. He was in ways what she viewed Michael, har ex husband, to be except she was now able to see the sincerity behind the actions when it came to Beel. Her ex was a narcissist who only used her when it was convenient for him. 

She let out a sigh. Annoyed, she got up from bed and left the room, She made her way to the hallway. She didn't have a particular destination in mind but she had thought about maybe sleeping in the living room next to the fireplace. It appeared to be running all the time and always put out the right amount of heat. She had noticed the consistent chill in the air and wondered if Donte's 9th layer of hell held some truth about it being frozen.

She sat on the couch and placed her head in her hands, she was so tired… She could not wait to have her own room back. She had not wanted to share a bed with Beel but she was also not going to kick him out of it. She also respected his wish to not have her sleep in his brother's bed. His brother was in the human world though so she wasn't sure why he would care or not.

Harlow sat on the couch and put her head in her hands. She was so tired. She sat like that for a few minutes. “Harlow!” She heard someone call. Though she was sure she did not recognize the voice. She was curious. She began to walk down the hallway. “Harlow…” The voice called again, more sing song than anything this time around. 

“Harlow…” 

“Harlow!”

The next thing she knew she was at the base of a spiral staircase. There was a hand on her shoulder and she could not for the life of her figure out how she had gotten there. "What do you think you're doing?" That voice, that voice she knew… and as it registered with her chills ran down her spine. Lucifer's hand was tight on her shoulder, she looked over her shoulder. Her green eyes were wide with fear. "I...I don't know." She stammered. He loosed his grip on her shoulder as she turned to face him. "I don't even know how I got here. Lucifer, where are we?" 

"No where you should be. Go back to bed. Now." His tone was dismissive and harsh. He stepped aside so she could leave the dark hallway, but she didn't move. Before she knew it the words just escaped her. "Lucifer, is there something up there? Is it dangerous, is that why you don't want me to go up there?"

Harlow wasn't sure why she asked those questions but she felt like she had to. "It isn't any more dangerous than the situation you are in now." Harlow swore she saw his eyes flash red and his answer was almost a growl. She wasn’t sure what she did but she crossed her arms over her chest and planted her feet. "Am I in danger now?" 

"Go back to your room Harlow." Voice now lethal. His eyes glowed red now. What was this? Where had this attitude come from? He couldn't figure her out, especially now. Every order he had given her she chose to disregard or she would somehow find a loophole. 

"No, I can't sleep. Beel has been keeping me up for the last week. I would like some time to explore the house, uninterrupted."

No, the word echoed in his head. No… she had never out right defied him, and uninterrupted... those words did not sound like her. Trying to contain his frustration with her he closed his eyes. And pinched the bridge of his nose. He took a deep breath and then looked back at her. 

Pinning her with his gaze she knew she had messed up by questioning him. "You can't sleep, you say. Fine. I will have you assist me in filing some paperwork I need to take care of." 

"Fine but that doesn't answer my questions. What is up there? And am I in danger now?" What the hell was she doing, for some reason she was questioning him, her mind was screaming at her to stop but her mouth kept running. 

"Harlow, do not question me. Go downstairs now." Final warning, Harlow knew it too. However, instead of going down stairs she said, "No." And with that his composure snapped. Eyes glowing red he lunged for her. Wrapping his arms around her waist he lifted her and threw her over his shoulder and began to carry her down stairs. She struggled for a moment until they were back in the main hallway.   
~  
Her night had ended at 4:00am. She had helped Lucifer with the paperwork and she had gone back to Beel's room and gotten 3 hours of sleep. Opting to skip her normal morning routine. She went down to breakfast blurry eyed. She wanted to explain to Lucifer that she had no idea what she had been thinking… 

It had felt like she wasn't even in charge of her own thoughts. But how did she explain that? She had been rude, she knew that. It was extremely out of character for her. She sat in her normal spot and avoided looking at Lucifer all together. 

Mammon sat down next to her going on about how unfair it was that his card had declined… again. Stating he had paid the balance last month, but deep down he knew he hadn’t. And the morning continued on that way. Each of the brothers made comments about how tired she looked. Each of them earning a glare from her. Levi, Beel, and Mammon shut their mouths quickly. Asmo suggested the eye cream he had given to her, and admittedly she had tried it but even that could not hide the purple circles under her eyes. Satan though, he grinned, he loved the anger he saw in her. It made him wonder how angry he could make her before she really snapped, he’d love to soak in some of that wrath. 

The only one who had not said anything was Lucifer. He only glanced at her as she got up to leave for class. Mammon was on her heels, they had class this morning at 9, and he knew if he was late one more time he would fail. Lucifer noted that her hair hung loose. He noted how dark the circles were under her eyes. Knowing that they were not caused by any normal sleep deprivation. He waited until he was sure the house was empty, and then made his way up to the attic. 

“I only called out the name of someone who is appearing in Beels’ dreams.” Belphegor said. 

“You leave her out of this.” Lucifer said through the door. 

“Oh? Is this the precious exchange student that is coming to stay with us?” Belphegor asked, indifferent. “It's too bad that I am locked away up here. I would LOVE to get to know her a little better. Her mind is sweet, but exhausted. From what I could tell is she would taste like lavender and honey. Tell me Lucifer, how often have you caught her scent and thought the same thing?”

Lucifer said nothing. He was sure that is exactly how she would taste, he had caught her scent when they first met. When he didn’t answer after a moment the silence was broken by a low dark laugh. “See, even you can't deny that the human would taste amazing. Why not share her with me, hum? Have a little fun.”

“No, and until the year is over and until she is back home safely, you will not be let out of this room.” In a second Belphegor was at the door. He slammed his fist into it. “How can you defend a human after what they did to Lilith? How can you betray our family like that?” Belphegor demanded. 

“This isn’t about Lilith. This is about building bonds with the other worlds. We are going to have to if we are to survive. I don't know what to do to make you understand that.” Lucifer said sadly. Thinking about his sister was never easy. 

“No, this is about you being a simp for Diavolo. What does he have on you Lucifer? Why are you going along with this?”

“You are the only one who hasn’t been able to let go of a hatred for humans Belphegor. You will stay here until she is gone.” Lucifer said, not wanting to fight with his brother. Not even wanting to acknowledge what he had just said. He turned on his heel and began to climb down the stairs. All the while hearing his brothers screams of protest. “I’ll kill her, you are going to pay for this! Do you hear me, Lucifer!”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, a few things about this chapter.  
> 1)No Luke staying in Beel's room... MC gets too many death threats in the game I think. Also for Harlow, she would totally shut down and possibly never recover if Lucifer were to threaten her now.  
> 2) Yes Harry Potter is my inspiration for classes in this story... I have nothing else to really go off of but you know what... Hufflepuff for life.  
> 3) 3:33am is a very significant time. Especially when dealing with demons.  
> 4) I love all of the boys in this game but I have my favorites... I am trying to give them all equal time but I have trouble writing what I don't know.  
> 5)As always be kind and leave a comment or a like if you wish! I am really having fun with this so I like to know if others are having fun too. Also not beta read.  
> 6) Sorry it took me a while to get this one posted.

Class seemed to last forever that day. That was also saying a lot for Harlow, on Mondays and Wednesdays she had Herbology, Ancient Runes: The secrets of the 3 worlds, and Magical Theory. All 3 of which were some of her favorite classes. Harlow would not have made it though Magical Theory if Satan had not been sitting next to her. Every few minutes she would feel a small poke at her ribs from the pen Satan was holding. After the 20th time she finally looked over at him, clearly annoyed. His eyes sparked with glee, he really enjoyed her angry side. Not that he didn't enjoy her all the time, he would be dead before he admitted that though. But when she was mad she had a small hint of cinnamon added to her scent. The extra spice made her irresistible to him. So much so that after the lecture was over and they were on their way home for the day Harlow turned to him and said. “I know that you think you are helping by poking me. I assume it was to “keep me awake” or whatever, but I swear to god if you touch me again in the next 24 hours I will rip off your hand.” 

“Don’t make promises you don't intend on keeping, Harlow, darling. Lies require commitment.” He said taking a few steps in front of her. Harlow sighed and tried to catch up to him. “Do you want to work on homework tonight? Or do you want to wait until Friday?” Both Harlow and Satan had Fridays off of school. Actually most of the residents at the house of lamentation had at least half of Friday off. Satan though had been a huge help in Magical theory. Harlow, according to everyone, had no affinity for magic whatsoever. 

Harlow was shocked to learn that she did in fact have some magical powers but it had gone unnoticed for so long and it was such a small amount, it may be impossible for her to even be able to use any of it. Diavolo had insisted though that she take Magical theory so that if she ever were able to use it, she would have the basics down. The basics he had said… that made her laugh, everything was so far over her head she wasn't sure she would ever master any of the so called basics. She took notes and while other students were tested on how they performed the theories she was tested on the functionality of it all. Satan had helped her study the movements and the spells and even helped edit her essays for the class. Only giving helpful tips of course, never actual answers. 

“Let's shoot for friday,” Satan answered. “Try and get some sleep tonight and tomorrow. How is Potions going? I heard the new professor is good but also can give hard assignments now and then.” Harlow nodded in agreement. “I will do my best to get some rest, though Beel snores so loud it makes it so difficult to get any rest. Don't get me wrong he is lovely, but I tend to be extremely crabby when I don't get enough rest. But potions is going great! It is actually a lot like cooking, follow the recipe and once you have that down, depending on what it is you can add or take out things to make it work better. I was actually really worried it was going to be like chemistry in the human world. Not my best subject I must admit.”

He was glad she was enjoying it, it was one of his favorite subjects and was his area of focus for many many years. Though he dabbled in the darker side of things while Harlow, he was more than certain stuck to the medicinal and helpful side. “That is really good to hear. And you Low Low, cranky? I would have never guessed.” He said poking her ribs again. Harlow let out a frustrated squeal and grabbed for his hand. “You really just want to see me angry don't you?”

They reached the house and when they opened the front door Lucifer was in the entrance hall waiting. When he began speaking Harlow averted her gaze from his. She was too tired to be looked down on today. “Harlow, I have spent the majority of the day expediting the repairs to your room. It is clear you have not been getting enough rest and after speaking with Diavolo, having you share a room with Beel can not get in the way of your academic success. Please make the proper arrangements to move back into your own space.” 

What Lucifer did not mention is that he did his best to get her room ready to get Harlow away from Beel. Beel's connection with his brother was direct and uninterrupted, Beel was unintentionally giving Belphegor information about Harlow. There was also the fact that Belphegor was the avatar of sloth. His powers worked best on humans who were exhausted, tempting them with the promise of sleep. In her state Belphegor could easily control her if she were to get too close. It also explained why Harlow, in Lucifer's opinion, had been nothing short of difficult the night before. 

“I would prefer you to be out of his room by this evening.” Lucifer started, when he felt a vibration in his pocket. He pulled out his DDD and saw that Diavolo was calling him. “Satan would be happy to assist you, I am sure. Now if you would please excuse me. I must take this.” He answered the call and left the room. Leaving a dumb founded Harlow and a slightly annoyed Satan in his wake. 

“He had originally said that my room would not be ready until next month. How did he pull this off? Will everything be up to building code?” Harlow asked to no one in particular. Satan laughed. “Here i was thinking you were ready to be back in your own room and you are concerned about building codes… Come on I will help you move your things back.”  
~  
She had offered to cook in Satan’s place because he had been nice enough to help her. Mammon had said that if only she had waited for him, he would have had everything moved for her in only minutes. Beel was sad but also was grateful for the shepherds pie, a family recipe, she had made for dinner that night. She had had to quadruple the recipe to make sure there was enough for everyone. Levi was excited that her renovated room had a new TV in it and he insisted that they watch anime sometime soon. Asmo was jealous of the new bath that was put in and asked her if he could use it some time. 

“Oh, Harlow, we can have a spa day! Just the two of us, I will show you how to use that line of skin care products, we can talk fashion and you can tell me all about that ex husband of yours.” The once lively dinner table went silent. Every single one of the brothers turned to look at her. Mammon was the first to speak. “You were married?” 

“Oh, they didn’t know?” Asmo asked.

“More importantly, Asmo, how did you know?” Harlow asked. She wasn’t mad about it. She didn't think it was relevant though to her time here in Devildom. “Oh honey, I can sense a broken heart from a mile away. Though yours is well on the mend.” Asmo stated flatly. Asmo felt as if she was challenging his abilities as the avatar of lust. He knew exactly what broken hearts looked like, having been the cause of many himself. 

“You were married?” Mammon asked again. This time a little more forcefully, he didn’t like the idea of some human male breaking his human's heart, (or a demon or an angel male for that matter). No, his treasure was too good for that. He would make sure her heart, that he was sure was made of gold, would be put back together. 

Harlow's eyes shifted to him. “Yes, I was. It isn’t uncommon in the human world to meet someone you think you are going to spend the rest of your life with in college. We were freshman in college, we dated all four years and got married the summer we graduated. We were married for 3 years. I filed for divorce when I found him in bed with someone else. It has been almost 2 years.” Blunt, she had been too blunt, in front of all of them. Again, she didn’t care if they knew, but being put on the spot about this sort of thing was still difficult. 

She looked around at the rest of the brothers who were all looking at her in shock. Even Lucifer was eyeing her with more curiosity than she liked. “Listen, I hope you all enjoyed dinner. I am really tired though, so I am going to head to bed. I would be happy to answer any questions you might have about my past love life, but individually and when I have had more sleep. I will see you all in the morning.” She got up from her spot at the table and made her way to her newly rebuilt bed room. 

As she was leaving she heard the following conversation:

Asmo: “Ow, why did you hit me Beel? You know I bruise easily.”  
Beel: “You made her sad, and I hope it bruises.”  
Mammon: “A heads up would have been nice Asmo!”  
Satan: “I wonder how mad she got about catching him with someone else.”  
Lucifer: “That is enough Gentlemen.”  
Levi: “This is exactly like what happened in…”  
Group: “No one cares Levi!”

She sat down on her bed and stared at the small fireplace, it was lit and warmed her room nicely. “Sleep… Finally I will be able to get some sleep.” Harlow was so thankful to Satan that he had insisted on waiting to study until Friday. She laid back on the bed and was almost instantly asleep. 

Harlow’s dreams were not her normal ones. Her dreams were grafic and so life-like. She kept hearing the voice from the night before calling out her name, calling for her to help them. She kept finding herself at the bottom of the staircase. Even if she left the area, only to be brought back to them. She dreamed about her ex, seeing his angelic face smiling up at her saying, “What are you going to do Harlow? You can't leave me.” Always taunting her, always questioning her strength and her faithfulness to him. 

She sat up in a cold sweat, “Michael”, her ex husband's name falling from her lips as she awoke. The small fire that was keeping her room warm was still going. It also made her room almost unbearable to stay in. She had to get out. Grabbing her DDD she left her room and began to wander aimlessly around the manor. 

She glanced down at her phone and noticed that it said 3:25 am. She had several missed texts from the brothers. She would get to those in the morning. She made herself ignore her dreams about Michael, but she could not ignore the dreams about the staircase she had found the night before. Soon she found herself back at the base of them. Taking a deep breath she began to climb. When she got to the top she took one quick glance down at her phone, the time reading 3:33am. That is when she heard a low chuckle coming from the other side of the door that was at the top of the stairs. 

“Harlow, I have been waiting for you to find me.” Dark, rich and deep, the voice from her dreams washed over her like a cool wave.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was hard to write. The writers block was real today because there are so many other ideas i have but in order to get there I have to write chapters like this one first.

“How do I get you out of here?” Harlow asked. She had a hard time trying to understand why Lucifer would lock up his own brother because of a disagreement on policies. However, she wasn't going to question it, this was the demon realm, not the human one and perhaps this was something normal. Though deep down Harlow knew that it wasn't. 

“Lucifer is the only one strong enough to open the door. Though I think if you were able to get the strength of all of my brothers, including Lucifer, you should be able to open the door.” Belphegor said. Doing his best to act the victim, he tried hard to act normal. Not wanting to let his demon form show. Gain her trust and as soon as the door was open he would bleed her dry and savor every second of it. For him it was hard not to daydream about. It was only when she spoke again that his eyes refocused.

“How am I going to do that?” Harlow asked him. 

He thought for a moment. “Have you ever heard of something called a pact?” To his surprise she nodded. “I have formed 2 pacts already, one with Mammon and one with Levi.” Belphegor fought the urge to roll his eyes and scoff. Of course it was those two. They had to be the easiest ones to fall for this pretty human’s charms. “Really? Where did they leave their marks?” 

Harlow had done her best to keep her tattoo covered since arriving. Having angel wings on full display in Devildom may not be the smartest thing. The took up the full length of her back form shoulder blade all the way down to the curve of her rear. There was open space on her spinal column that she had intended to leave open but when she formed the pacts their marks showed up in between the wings starting with Mammons not quite at the base of her neck but slightly lower, then directly beneath that was Levi’s mark. Not wanting to show this new demon her back she simply put, “they are on my back.” He didn't really seem to hear her. He was deep in thought.

“Belphegor?” She asked. “Hum?” He said blinking up at her. “Oh, right. Beel may be the next one you want to try and form a pact with. Then possibly Asmo or Satan. Lucifer is going to be your challenge. He hasn’t formed a pact with a human in a very long time.”

They discussed the plan a little longer. Stating that she could not tell the other brothers that he was up there until he was free. Lucifer was not going to be happy about it but Belphegor promised to protect her from his wrath if it came down to that. He also wanted to keep their meetings a secret, if the other brothers knew one of them would be bound to letting it slip and Lucifer would put a stop to it. It was too easy for him to get her to trust him. She smiled warmly at him before she headed down the stairs. As soon as she was out of sight, he shifted, just to drink in her essence a little while longer. Now his countdown began.

She got back to her room and noticed that what seemed like hours had only been about 45 min. She climbed back in bed, knowing her alarm would go off soon but not really caring if she skipped her yoga this morning. She pulled out her DDD and set her alarm for 6:30, not really sure if she would be able to go back to sleep though. Her dreams had not been nightmares but anything that had to do with Michael kept her up, even now. 

She began to scroll through texts on her DDD. 

Mammon: Listen, I didn't mean to upset you. I’ll always be there to help if you need it Treasure. If anyone goes breaking your heart again, they are going to have to answer to this demon. 

Asmo: Sorry to spill your secret. Lets spa day this weekend and we can talk it out. He wasn’t worth it anyway.

Levi: Let's play devils cart on your new TV this weekend. Oh or we can watch that new Anime that came out! Sorry you're upset.

Beel: Lets bake some human food, I want to know what your favorite desserts are in the human world!

Satan: Still on for homework on Friday? 

Lucifer: Forgive my brothers for their lack of empathy and tact. I will see you in class tomorrow.

Rolling her eyes at the brothers. She continued on. There was a group message between Diavolo and Barbatos and another one between the men at purgatory hall. It seemed the brothers could not keep this new revelation to themselves. Needing to keep herself from spiraling down that rabbit hole of explaining what happened, she chose to focus on her task at hand, form pacts with the brothers. She texted Beel back about desserts and said they would need to go grocery shopping. He offered to go with her but ultimately said that taking one of the other brothers with her would be a better idea. That way there was no chance of him eating everything in the store.   
~  
At RAD she met with her usual suspects for lunch, Satan, Mammon, Simeon, and Solomon. “Does anyone want to go shopping with me after school or tomorrow? Beel and I are going to make a few human desserts this weekend and I may need help carrying everything.” Harlow asked them as they sat around eating. “I’ll go with you once we are done studying tomorrow. Does that sound alright?” Satan asked her. She nodded grateful for all his help. He was quickly becoming a good friend and she was thankful for that. The conversation continued on about what her and Solomon's favorite desserts were. Starting to connect them to personal memories the conversation changed as soon as she brought up a past memory about making peanut butter blossom cookies during Christmas in college.

“Now, Harlow, I want to hear more about this ex of yours.” Solomon said. The rest of them looked at her, clearly wanting to know more as well. “Why is this so interesting to you all?” Harlow sighed and put her head in her hands. “Well, honestly? You give off a sense of innocence and kindness. I would have thought you to be a virgin. There is also something very angelic about you.” Solomon said as she was taking a sip of her drink. Harlow choked. “Clearly you don’t know me very well then.” She didn’t notice but everyone’s attention peaked when she said that, making them all curious as to what she meant. “Also, I'm not sure how I should take that… But fine, what do you want to know about him?” 

“What was his name?” Solomon asked. “Michael Prince.” 

“How did you meet?” Mammon asked. “We had a history class together called Muslims, Christians, and Jews in Medieval Europe. His major was in history, specifically European and had a minor in theology. I just thought the class sounded interesting.” 

“What attracted you to him?” Satan asked. “He was actually very good looking. I was shocked when he approached me. He said I reminded him of someone he used to know. But beyond the physical, we were able to have decent conversations, he was funny and he always took me by surprise.”

“What went wrong?” Simeon finally asked. The question she had been dreading, the one she hated to think about. “Things changed after we got married.” Harlow looked down at her hands, there was so much more that happened then him just cheating on her, but how did she explain the fights, him twisting the situation, gaslighting her into believing that she was in the wrong. How did she explain his temper? She hadn’t even worked it out herself. “He cheated on me with a colleague of his, I caught them and was moved out the next week. I left nothing but the divorce paperwork. He signed it and that was that.” 

“Have you seen anyone since? You mentioned that it had been about 2 years.” Mammon asked. Harlow actually laughed at that. “Hell no! I am a bit of a workaholic and chose to focus on that rather than pursue anything new. Besides, it's given me a chance to get to know myself again.”

She thought for a moment before she asked “You all seem very fascinated by this idea of me being married. Is marriage not a thing in this realm?” Satan and Mammon looked at each other. Solomon chuckled and Simeon blushed. “No, not often anyway. If a marriage happens it's for political advantage, even then the alliances formed there are very tentative, they only become solid if a child is conceived and makes it to adulthood. It also doesn't help that the male population outweighs the female population five to one. For the most part demons have more than one relationship going at a time, taking male and female lovers. Some are fleeting, others are more serious. There are no rules.”

“Interesting,” Harlow said. “Simeon, what about angels?” He looked at her for a moment considering how to answer. “We can have more than one lover, but we all end up married at some point. Our partner is chosen for us and more often than not is only to grow the population. Only Archangels are allowed to pick their partners and marry for what humans would call love. Though they often maintain side relationships as well.” 

“Fascinating.” Harlow was intrigued, having only ever been with one man in her life she made note to get out and enjoy herself more. Well, once she was ready of course, she was still working through things. She wasn't sure how the logistics would work though, was there no such thing as cheating in the other realms? The thought of having more than one partner was odd to her, but she had been raised to think that monogamy was the norm and from what she gathered that was not the case. They had made it sound like everyone was aware of the other parties relationships, which if they were all consenting adults, then the relationships didn't seem to be a problem to her.   
~  
The rest of the day flew by. Harlow made dinner again, watched a movie with some of the boys, got a talking to from Lucifer about getting one question wrong on her potions homework. “Come ask me for help next time.” He had said before turning on his heel and leaving. She had thought about it but with Belphegor in the attic she wasn't sure how much she could trust Lucifer. It wasn't going to stop her from trying to get to know him though. She made plans to meet Satan in the library the following morning after breakfast and they would go to the grocery store after lunch. 

Harlow plopped down on her bed closing her eyes before she heard a knock come to her door. “Come in!” she said. Her door creaked open and she sat up to look and see who had entered. Mammon quickly closed the door behind him. He was holding a bottle of wine and 2 glasses. He came over and sat down next to her. He handed her a glass and then opened the bottle. When he was done filling up each glass, he spoke “I wanted to properly apologize for yesterday. I know you saw my text last night but still. I shouldn't have pushed into your personal life. The last few days have been stressful and i don't know, i thought you and i could share some wine and talk. Ask me anything, I am an open book. Just don’t tell my brothers I'm being nice to ya.”

“Mammon, really it's alright. I am sure it would have come up somehow. However, I am never going to say no to wine.” Harlow giggled. Her green eyes met his for the first time all day. They sat and talked for a while, he told her stories of him as a child, told her anything she wanted to know about him. She reached out and grasped his hand. “Thanks for caring, Mammon.” He blushed and scooted a little closer to her. “I’m going to make sure your heart is put back together before you leave.”

She smiled up at him before turning away to take another sip of her wine. Not sure what to say back to him. When she swallowed she looked back at him. He was closer now, and the next thing she knew, his lips were pressed against hers.   
~  
Diavolo and Lucifer sat in Lucifer's secret study. “It's interesting isn’t it, she has gotten stronger, and has been able to form pacts with two of my brothers. She was supposed to be a normal human, that sort of thing should have killed her. The amount of power would be too much for a normal human.” Lucifer stated as he took a sip of devildom whiskey. Diavolo nodded. “I think I may enlist the angels' help to see what we can learn about her. She could be a descendant from one of Solomon's lines from long long ago.” Lucifer had not thought of that, though it would make sense. “Also, next weekend, I would like to host a weekend long event as a get to know you for the house of lamentation and purgatory hall. I read somewhere that having scavenger hunts can be a good team building activity.” Lucifer took another drag from his glass, a whole weekend of trying to keep his idiot brothers in line at the demon lord’s castle was not something he wanted to do, but instead of saying so, he said “It shall be done.”

“Oh, one more interesting thing, Harlow’s ex husband's name is Michael Prince. Isn’t that a coincidence.” Diavolo said laughing to himself. Lucifer’s blood ran cold. He did not often think of the Archangel Michael, but he knew that some times that was a name he would use when in disguise in the human world. “I looked up how many Michael Prince’s there were in the world, far too many for there to even be a chance that it’s him.” Diavolo knew what he was thinking, “Wouldn’t it be odd though.”

“It's impossible, the last time I heard that he was in the human realm was when Christ was born.” Lucifer stated. Though thinking back on things now, he wondered what the significance of the angel wings tattoo that Harlow had on her back. He wondered why they looked so similar to his wings when he was an angel. He was going to have to get a closer look, but he knew it was going to take time before he could.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harlow and Mammon's kiss explored. 
> 
> Satan is pissed that Harlow keeps him waiting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not beta read, 3rd chapter in 3 days... sorry!!! Writing is what is keeping this person from spiraling into US election anxiety. As always I hope you like it and drop a comment if you want! I enjoy the constructive feedback. :)

Harlow woke the next morning, an arm draped across her midsection. She snuggled closer to the warmth, not fully realizing what she was doing. It had been so long since she had felt the warmth of someone's arm wrapped around her. Soft sheets engulfed her as the arms holding her responded to her movement. Soft lips brushed against her temple as she slowly drifted back to sleep. However, not long after her alarm went off. She groaned pulling away from the warmth to turn it off. The cool air slipping through the sheets made Harlow wake up fully. When she realized that someone was in bed with her, she bolted out of bed. She let out a gasp when she saw who it was and his state of undress. 

Mammon sat up slowly, “Harlow, what, what is it?” 

She was pressed against her dresser only wearing an oversized tee shirt and a pair of boy short panties. Never, had she ever been this undressed around the brothers. “Are… Are you naked in my bed. She took in his exposed torso as he blinked sleep from his eyes. “What? No, I have my underwear on.” Mammon answered confused. He finally looked up at her after rubbing his eyes. He took in her form. Thick thighs, defined waist and slightly smaller upper half. Healthy and prepositional all around, she worked to tug her tee shirt down. Mammon got out of bed and walked over to her. “Treasure, what are you doing? You don’t have to hide yourself from me.” He said as his hand wrapped around the back of her neck. Placing a kiss on her forehead, he released her and began to put on his clothes. “Besides, all we did was make out and have some extremely light foreplay last night.” 

Harlow let out a breath she had not realized she had been holding and stepped away from her dresser. Mammon fully dressed now chuckled. “I’ll wait as long as I have to for you to be ready for me Treasure. But I promise you will be ready for me.” Mammon said as he walked past Harlow his hands sliding around her waist, he kissed her lightly on the side of her neck. As he was leaving her room he said “If you have any free time this weekend let me know.” With a wink back at her he said “Though, I don’t think that will be the case.” With that he left her room. 

She stood in the middle of her room dumb founded. “What in the hell…” She thought to herself. Wine was definitely her drink of choice, and if it was red… well then forget about it. All bets were off at that point. She had made some of the most drastic choices in her life when having had 4 or more glasses of wine. One of the biggest ones she could think of was her angel wing tattoo.   
~  
Michael and herself had been talking about getting tattoos to show that they were meant to be. This was their junior year of college and they had just left a party at his frat house and she was drunk enough to agree to it. 

“I’ll do it, let's just do it.” Harlow said, slurring her words. Holding an open wine can in her hand and walking a few feet in front of him arms spread wide. “What are you talking about Harlow?” 

“Tattoos of course! I want to get angels wings on my back. You are always talking about how much you like learning about them in your theology classes.” She spun around to face him. His dark blue eyes locking on hers. For a second she could have sworn that they glowed bright. “Yeah! Why not. My future husband, the priest, with the rebel wife who rides a motorcycle, has tattoos, piercings and fights the patriarchy on a regular basis.” He circled his arms around her and kissed her deeply. “As long as it is truly what you want, I don’t care what you do with your body. But one request, I’d like them to look like golden eagles wings?”

“OOOO so specific! Is there any reason why?” Harlow teased Pulling away from Michael. Pulling her jean jacket around herself as she skipped ahead. Michael watched as her long brown hair bounced with her, cursing himself for getting attached. “I just think they are cool. Also if you are riding a motorcycle, I’d better be the one driving.” He laughed as he saw her stumble, but as always, he was there to catch her.   
~  
The sound of her phone ringing brought her back. She went to her phone and picked it up. 

“Hello?” Harlow aske, slightly breathlessly.

“Um hey, are we still studying today? It’s almost 9:00 and I wanted to make sure.” It was Satan, making sure plans were still in place. 

“Oh yeah! Um, can we meet at 9:30, I forgot to set my alarm for a good time and still need to shower.” She didn’t get a response for a moment. She had to look at her phone to see if they were still connected. 

Finally after a long moment of pause. “Fine. But you owe me.” Then he hung up. 

“What in fuck” Harlow thought to herself as she turned on her shower and stripped off her pjs. She let the water run over her as she thought about what had happened last night. Slowly memories of the night before came back to her. 

Somehow she had managed to stash a few bottles of wine in her room before the renovation that stayed safely in her bottom dresser drawer. When Harlow and Mammon ran out of wine in the first bottle she pulled out another, and then another. He had made his move after her second glass but she had pulled away. Then after her 4th glass she was the one to kiss him. It was like she was a teen ager again, a sloppy make out session to start but slowly they fell into a rhythm. Mammon ran his hands over her hips and rear, then moved them back up, over her shirt, and cupped a breast in each hand as she lay down. When her kissing had gotten lazy he finally pulled back and looked at her. Harlow's eyes were shut and she was breathing heavily. Mammon sighed and slid off her shoes and her jeans. Shifting her so she lay on the bed, he gave her one last kiss.

As he moved to get up she grabbed his hand one more time. “No, please stay with me. Keep the nightmares away.” She said softly. Mammon sighed. “Fine, but don't tell anyone I was nice to you.” He said stripping down to his boxers and crawling into bed next to her.   
~  
Flustered she hurried through her shower and dressed quickly. She blow dried her hair as best she could before heading to the library but let it hang loose. When she arrived the library was empty. Or at least from what she could see. “Hello?” Harlow called out. She took a few steps into the library only to feel a tug on her hair. She stumbled back into something warm and solid. The hand on her hair tugged again forcing her head up to look at him. Satan was glairing at her. His eyes glowing emerald and his grip tightening as her eyes met his. Before she knew it his lips briefly and gently brushed hers before he released her entirely. He stepped away from her and moved to a table not too far away from them where he had already set up their books. 

“Satan? What the actual fuck was that?” Harlow asked him in complete shock. She wasn’t scared or nervous. But she was actually confused. He had never shown any interest in her like Mammon had. He looked up for the book that he had opened, “You won't keep me waiting again.” He stated flatly. “Wait, what?” Harlow asked. He pinched his nose and closed his eyes and let out the deepest sigh she had ever heard. “Harlow, it would be in your best interest if you did not keep me waiting. I enjoy punctuality and follow through.” When he looked back up at her, his eyes were back to normal. “Should we study now?” he asked. Not wanting to press things further she sat down and opened the book in front of the seat she had chosen.


	10. Chapter 9.5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I suck at summaries. 
> 
> Filler chapter!
> 
> The brothers see Harlow in something other than leggings & a t-shirt or her school uniform for once and don't know how to act. 
> 
> People in the human world are beginning to wonder where Harlow has gone. She is not one to go missing unnoticed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 9.5 because I do not feel it should be a full chapter. Chapter 10 coming later this week. 
> 
> Hope everyone is safe, happy, and healthy. Thanks so much for reading!

They studied for about 3 hours before Harlow finally put down her pen and stretched her arms into the air. “I think we have done enough studying for today Satan, don't you?” Satan looked up from his work. “Have you finished your essay on the functionality of the Truth Spell?” 

“Yes I have, well except for the conclusion. I will write that on Sunday. Besides we need to get to the store.” Harlow answered him. His mouth formed a thin line. Remembering what happened earlier and how he had said she owed him for being late that morning, Harlow quickly added, “I am also famished and would love to buy you some lunch if that would be alright with you.” His expression softened then. “Fine, we will stop for today. I intend on reading that report on Sunday though. I wont have you turning anything in that is less than satisfactory.” Closing his book he stood. She began to gather her things, as she collected them she realized that this was the first time she was going out into Devildom for leisure. She had walked to and from school yes but she had not gone into town. As they walked to the library door she paused as he walked past her and exited the library.

“Hey Satan,” She started. He looked back at her over his shoulder. “Would it be alright if I changed before we went out? This is my first time going into town and I don't want to wear leggings and a T-shirt. “Meet me at the front door in 10 minutes.” Was all he said. She watched him disappear down the hall, then she hurried to her room. She dug through her closet and found a dark blue dress. It went down to her knees, with ¾ length sleeves and an off the shoulder neckline. It was somewhat vintage looking but that was her style when she was not at home or going to school. She had in fact worn very similar things when she was at book signings and when she would go out with friends. She put on a pair of sandals and found a small silver necklace with a Celtic knot pendant. She quickly threw on some make up and put her hair up into a half up and half down style and ran from her room. 

When she reached the front door Satan was already waiting there. Has it already been 10 minutes? Harlow was not sure. “Satan, sorry! I really hope I didn't keep you waiting.” She said as she approached him. He turned to face her, his eyes widened for a moment and she saw his lips part slightly. He had never seen her like this before. Sure she always looked presentable but only in very relaxed clothing or in her school uniform. He had never imagined her looking like this. He was gawking at her and Harlow wasn't sure what to do. “Hey, I'm sorry if I'm late. Please don't pull my hair again. I actually put some effort into it this time.” As she said it, Lucifer, Leviathan, Beelzebub, Asmo, and Mammon all walked in. The conversation ceased entirely as all eyes fell on her. “What?” She asked them as they all had the same expression that Satan had.

Mammon was the first to react, “What? What do you mean what? Go change! Can't you see everyone is looking at you Treasure?” His eyes traveled over her now defined curves. “No, I am going into town for the first time and want to look nice. Besides I'm an adult who can wear what she likes.” She said defensively. It was a simple outfit, she didn’t understand the reaction she was getting from it. 

Asmo was next, “Oh darling, where have you been hiding all of those curves? And that dress! And the color, it looks wonderful on you! Tomorrow, it's supposed to be a spa day but let's go shopping as well! I’d love to see you in more outfits like this one.” He walked over to her and took her hand, “Do a spin for me will you.” He twirled her around. “I love it! I’m going to go make a list of everything we need to get you right now.” He released her hand and walked away.

Levi mumbled something about her looking nice but was blushing and stuttering too much for him to say too much else. Beel asked her if she was going to be wearing that while they were baking, and if she was he would recommend wearing an apron. Lucifer was quiet as his brothers passed through the entry. When it was just Harlow, Satan and Lucifer in the entry, Lucifer finally said “Make sure she gets back safely Satan.” Then he was gone. Satan's face formed into stone at those words, anger playing in his eyes as they began to glow green. “As if I cant take care of some weak human.” He said to no one in particular, then he grabbed her hand, just a little too tight and pulled her to the door. “Come on we have a lot of shopping to do. Also, next time don’t surprise us like that. Wear something normal.”

“It is normal” Harlow said, his hand tightened on hers and he pulled her out the door. The flash in his green eyes told her not to push it any farther.  
~  
He knocked on her apartment door. He had not been in too much contact with her since they had split up almost 2 years ago, but he did send her the occasional text. Sometimes it was about her most current book or it was about something trivial. Just in an effort to keep tabs on her. She always answered in 72 hours but it had been weeks now. He waited a few moments, but there was no answer. He knocked again. But again there was nothing. He put his hand on the handle and turned. It was unlocked. 

Walking into the apartment he saw no signs of struggle but her refrigerator doors were open. He walked through lightly, but touched nothing. He walked into the den, her computer sitting there dark. Papers were strewn across the floor. This was her writing process. He knew all about it after living with it for 3 years. There was no sign of her there though. Her scent had faded slightly form the area. 

He walked into the bedroom where he found the bed made but her closed doors and dresser drawers were wide open. They were completely empty. Her scent was mixed with brimstone and pine. He knew that smell and blue eyes began to glow like lightning as he fought changing. 

“She’s not here is she?” A male voice he recognized said from behind him. He turned around to find Alex standing there. “I haven’t heard from her in weeks. I got a weird email from her saying that she was going to be vacationing in Italy for a while. I didn't think that would affect her meeting deadlines.”

“When did you get that email?” He asked the other man. Not meeting his eyes quite yet. His anger was still rolling through him and he did not wish to scare Alex. “I got it about a month ago. I didn't think she would be gone this long.” He turned back to the bedroom and looked around again. Brimstone and pine, brimstone and pine. He couldn't let it go. That was more prominent in the room than the lavender and honey he was used to. He was beginning to feel uncomfortable, he did not like the idea of other things taking what was his to protect. He did not like to think that what he was protecting had gone missing under his nose. 

“Michael?” The other man's voice cut through the silence. “You didn’t have anything to do with her going missing did you?” Alex’s voice was quiet but it was a real question. A question that was laced with distrust and venom.


	11. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harlow and Satan go shopping and she finds a dress she loves. The Dress is important, I promise
> 
> Beel and Harlow do some baking and it doesn't go as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *** THIS IS HOW HARLOW DEALS AND DELT WITH HER EX. ***

Harlow was having the best time in town. She loved the shops and the sting lights that hung above the main street. She loved the bookstore, the apothecary, the market and the countless other shops they passed. Satan was indulgent and patient with her as they walked. She didn’t stop for too long in front of any shops so he had no reason to rush her along. That was until they walked past a small boutique. She stopped and stared at the dress in the window. It was on a mannequin that was set on top of a slowly spinning platform. It had to have been to show off the beauty of both the front and the back of the dress. The dress was a velvet cobalt blue, it had a high neckline in the front but the cut in the back was so low that if she were to have worn it, the dimples on her back would have shown. Connecting the shoulders there was a string of crystals, Harlow was sure this was to hold the straps in place. In the center of the string there was an ornately decorated clasp that looked much like something straight out of the art deco era. It looked like something you would see on the red carpet in modern day inspired by the late 1920s and early 1930s She could not stop looking at it. 

“Harlow come on, we have all the stuff you need for baking tonight with Beel.” Satan had noticed that she wasn't at his side anymore. When he saw her just standing there he walked back over to her and grabbed her elbow, meaning to pull her away until he saw what she was staring at. “Oh, do you like that?” She would look good in it, he thought to himself. “Yes, I love it,” Harlow said. “But I wouldn’t have anywhere to wear it.” She admitted sadly. 

Before he could reply to her a voice from behind them said, “Satan? Is that you? Who is your friend?” They both turned to find Simeon, Solomon and Luke with shopping bags in hand. “Oh! It's Harlow!” Luke said excitedly. The little angel was always so happy to see her. He was also always concerned for her safety. Though she was not entirely sure why. Solomon spoke next “I didn't recognize you outside of your school uniform and with your hair down. It's nice to see you outside of that environment, Harlow.” 

“I agree,” Simeon said, “What brings you to town today?” He asked casually. Harlow was still fixated on the dress. She didn't notice how the older angel and the human's eyes raked over her. But satan sure as hell noticed, and he did not like it. “We are shopping so Harlow can make some human desserts for us.” He ground out, drawing the two males' attention away from her. “What are you making?! I love baking!” Luke asked excitedly, he reached out and tugged on harlow's hand to gain her attention. “Hum?” She finally took her attention away from the beautiful dress. “Oh! You love baking do you? We will have to do that together some time.” She ruffled his hair, “As for what I am making, well, I am making a chocolate cake, some chocolate chip cookies and a Cinnamon apple upside down cake. Beel has asked to try some of my favorites from the human world so I thought we could start with these. We are going to pair them with some wines as well.” 

They talked for a while longer, extending an offer for Harlow to go over to purgatory hall some time soon to bake with Luke. She was too preoccupied to notice that Satan had snapped a photo of the dress in the window, and had quickly sent it to Asmo. He watched the older males carefully as they talked and when he decided he had had enough of sharing her with them he mentioned something about the time, and that they should get back to the house for dinner soon. 

Asmo had been in charge of making dinner that night. Needless to say it was a dinner full of different kinds of aphrodisiacs. All of which Harlow thought were a hoax, well at least they were in the human world. Devildom could be a different story but she picked and chose how much she ate, and what it was she ate. If one of the brothers expressed that it was particularly effective, she avoided it. Her mind kept remembering the night before and the morning. 

She was making herself blush thinking about it. Asmo who was sitting across the table from her kicked her under the table and winked at her a few times. The last time he managed to catch her eye he mouthed “I know your secret.” At this point Harlow turned crimson and had to excuse herself from the table, telling Beel she would meet him in the kitchen in 2 hours. 

Back in her room she paced back and forth trying to clear her head. If she was being completely honest with herself she had been avoiding men at all costs for 18 months. Michael had done a number on her heart and she never thought that she would be enough for anyone, but here she was surrounded by God(s) knew how many attractive males and for some reason some of them seemed to find her attractive back. She wiped off her makeup and put on leggings and another oversized t-shirt, this time opting for her journey concert T she got from her mom. She threw her hair in a bun, using an elastic, not her normal pen, and stood in the middle of her room not knowing what to do with herself for the next 45min. 

She walked over to her desk and opened the top drawer where she had placed her phone from the human world. Turning it on she waited. She had hopped that her email to Alex about traveling to Italy would be enough for him to leave her alone for at least 2 months. He had been pressuring her to take time off since her divorce. As her editor and having known both her and Michael, he had been concerned for her well being. She saw a few emails from him asking where she was, how she was doing. “Shit” She thought, she quickly thought of a reply, she was a writer, she could make up a believable excuse right? 

She told him she had been out of service in the Alps for a while and that she was thinking of extending her trip for a while longer. She also said that she could perhaps finish her new novel remotely and video chat from time to time. She could juggle school work and write a book. She would have to check with Lucifer though to see if it was a possibility. She had done it before. Her first book she had published while in her last year in school...but that was human school not demon school. 

She checked her social media, not missing much. She had 100 friends on Facebook and LinkedIn. She didn't have an Instagram, though she was sure it was a lot like Devil Gram which the brothers had insisted she download. That is when she flipped back to her home screen and saw that she had 35 missed texts… From Michael. Let's repeat that 35 missed texts from Michael. They started out with “Hey, how is the new book coming?” Then went on to “Hey, I know it has been a while but I still enjoy your books, when is this new one coming out?” Then, “Harlow? Seriously? I thought we had split up amicably?” Followed by “Fine, I guess I never meant anything to you. I thought you were more mature than this. I thought we agreed to still be friends. I hope this new guy is worth it.” Continuing on to more degrading texts, calling her a slut and telling her that he was glad she filed for divorce and that his secretary was making him very happy. Harlow was sure Becky was. Then the final 3 texts read as follows:

“Low, I am extremely worried about you. If you don't answer me in 24 hours I am coming over.”

“I am at your front door, please, Harlow, open the door so I know you are alright.”

“Why is all of your clothing gone? Where are you?”

As she looked at that last message, another came in. 

“I will tear this world apart looking for you.”

She dropped her phone. He had always been this way with her, but she had done a good job of keeping his anger since leaving him at bay by texting him back from time to time. But being in devildom, she had lost track of time. She had been so busy. When she got back to the human world she was honestly terrified of what would happen. He had only ever hit her once, it had been the night she had walked in on him and his lover, they had had fights sure but never like that one. That had also been the night that she knew if she didn't get out then, she would not get out at all. He had probably been verbally and emotionally abusive the entire time, but she overlooked it because it was never physical. But that night... that night she had gone over and stayed at Alex’s house. He had helped her make a plan to get out. 

Shaking, she tried to get a hold of herself. She ran to the bathroom and splashed cool water on her face. She had known the brothers for a very short time but for some reason she felt that even though they were dangerous, they would never hurt her like Michael did. Taking deep breaths she made her way to the kitchen where she found Beel Waiting for her.  
~  
She sat on the kitchen counter as Beel enjoyed the last of the chocolate chip cookies, paired with a devildom wine. She grinned at him. “Beel, I am so happy you like this human dessert! What do you think of the wine with them? Often they are paired with milk but because this is the first human dessert I am making for you, I wanted it to be special.” Beel only gave her a closed lip smile, cheeks stuffed full of cookie. But she could tell he was genuinely enjoying them, she would make sure he had some before she left, and if he ever made it to the human world she would make them for him. Though that was another 10 months off. 

“Ok, the upside down cake will be out in the next 15min, I am going to start on the chocolate cake.” she hopped off the counter. She had picked the chocolate cake because it reminded her of the one that Ms. Touchable made the poor kid in Matilda eat as punishment. She wasn’t sure why, but that cake had always been her favorite dessert… probably because she would only have one small piece at a time. Not the entire thing, but with Beel she was not worried about him eating it all and not having a good time. She also had to remember that tonight was a good chance for her to try and gain Beels trust, so that she could help Belphi. 

She began to put together the ingredients. She felt Beel walk beside her and watch as she used the hand mixer to slowly mix things together. He enjoyed having Harlow around, when she stayed in his room she would hold his hand when they slept, on Tuesdays and Thursdays when they had lunch together, she would give him her leftover food. On Saturday mornings she had started to do a cardio workout with him. She was the only one who was willing to try his rigorous exercises, and for a human he had to admit, he was extremely impressed. 

Her human phone sat next to the mixing bowl, she liked that she only needed to use it to communicate with Alex through email and to look up recipes. She knew texting and phone calls would be spotty so she would push the thought of Michael out of her mind for now. He didn't have her new email, and she wasn’t about to give it to him. Maybe this was a good time for her to cut the remaining ties she had with him. 

“Ok Beel, the sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla are all mixed together, now we need to mix the flour, baking soda and cocoa powder together. Do you mind grabbing that stuff for me. While you do that would you be interested in listening to some music that I grew up listening to?”

“Sure” He nodded as he picked at the upside down cake that had just come out of the oven. She put on her 1980’s rock mix, knowing she needed to start working on her character for her book again. He brought her all of the ingredients and watched as she began to put it all together. He saw what he thought to be her DDD light up next to her. “Hey Harlow, it looks like someone is calling you, do you mind if I answer it?” Harlow, thinking that it was her DDD as well agreed to let him do so. She was anticipating it being Luke asking her how baking was going she had him put it on speaker. 

“Hey Luke! How’s it going?” She asked enthusiastically. Truly not even thinking about the fact that her human phone could work for something other than email. There was a brief moment before the person on the other line said “Seriously Harlow? Who the Fuck is Luke and where do you get off on leaving me on read?” As the voice registered with her she looked up at Beel, with wide eyes, terror written in them. “Michael? How did you get this number?” She asked quietly. “You ignore me for 2 months and then you leave me on read for 4 hours, and you have the audacity to ask me how I got your number?” He continued on. Beel watched her carefully. He noticed how she turned the mixer off and set it down. He noticed how her whole body shook as the person on the other line spoke. “Where are you? I am coming to get you right now.” The voice Beel did not recognize said. “No, Michael, I am sorry.” Harlow said quietly. Beel knew the male on the other end of the phone heard her voice shake. He heard him laugh dryly as he said “You’re sorry? Really? Well when I come get you, will be.” 

Beel saw the tears begin to roll down her face. This is when he decided to step in. “Listen, dude, whoever you are, you need to leave Harlow alone. She is under my protection and if you keep talking to her like this, I am gonna kick your ass. Not just me either, my brothers as well.” 

“Wait… Harlow, who is that, where are you? Seriously I am going to come get you right now.” Michael said, the voice on the other line sounding slightly familiar but he was too angry to process it. Then the same voice said “You won't be able to reach her again using this number, leave her alone and just know you got off easy.”

With that Beel crushed the phone in his hand. He watched as Harlow sank to her knees, shaking the whole way down. When she saw the phone land in a crushed pile next to her, she let out a heart wrenching sob. Beel stooped down and gathered her into his arms, setting her on the counter in front of him. He took her chin and forced her to look at him. Beel couldn't stand the look in her eyes, all he saw was fear, something he had not seen, not even when she first showed up in devildom. “Let me protect you,” he said, a stream of tears slipping from her eyes. He kissed her cheek, doing his best to catch the salt water, that was also laced with her scent. “How?” Harlow croaked out. “He is in the human world, when I go back… You won't be there.” She sobbed again. 

Beel thought about her words for a moment. Then he said, “If we form a pact I can be there in seconds if something happens. All you will have to do is call me.” And with that, a pact was formed. His mark showed up slightly lower than Mammon and Levi’s. They were evenly spaced enough to allow for two other marks under Levies and over Beel’s. Beel’s mark however, felt genuine, she did not have to trick or cohort him into it. She wanted his protection and he wanted to protect her. 

When Belphegor felt the bond slip into place with the human and his twin. When he felt the sincerity behind it, he went into a rage. He destroyed the room as much as he could, shifting into his demon form and breaking every piece of furniture, and tearing up every pillow in sight. He could not understand how his twin could have such feelings for some human.


	12. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you have not played this game all the way through, this may have some spoilers in here... Please read at your own risk. 
> 
> Harlow meets with Belphegor, he throws a fit about her and Beels pact. 
> 
> Lucifer is Luciferish... I love him but he is difficult to write.
> 
> Yes yes, Michael is THAT Michael.
> 
> Uriel (archangel according to the eastern othodox church) makes an appearance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so, I am sorry this is so short. This has not been beta read, none of them ever are, but if you are interested, let me know! 
> 
> I hope everyone is happy, healthy and making smart choices. I am in the States and we have a "stay at home order" so that means more chapters this weekend! 
> 
> As always, thanks so much for reading! I am having fun with this one. Also, I promise I am trying to move the story along, but there is a lot going on in my brain to get it from A to Z.

Harlow laid in her bed staring at the ceiling. How was she going to explain this one? Lucifer had not been happy when she had made pacts with Mammon and Levi… but she could understand that. They had each tricked the other into making the pact with her. Beel on the other hand had made the pact on his own accord. Honestly she hadn’t planned on the night going that way. She had thought that it would take her a few weeks to figure out how to get him to form a pact with her. 

It turns out all it took was her crying and a very one sided conversation with Michael for him to think she needed him to protect her. Harlow had not heard Michaels voice since she left. Even through the divorce they had mediation in separate rooms. Not that they had much property to split and she had made him sign a prenup before getting married to him. Harlow’s first book had been a hit in the murder mystery genre and had brought in over $1.2 million in revenue. It was published in their Senior year of college and she was still dumb founded by how she had managed to make it that big with her first book. They cut ties cleanly and she had never planned on actually speaking to him again. 

Harlow rolled on to her side, knowing that she would not be able to sleep that night. Looking at her phone she took note of the time, it was 1:30am and she knew with things as quiet as they were the brothers were asleep or not home. Harlow sat up and let out a sigh, she thought that a walk might do her good. Well, this was as good of time as any to tell Belphegor she made a pact with Beel. She thought to herself as she stood and put on her robe and slippers. She walked over to her bedroom door and peered out, checking to see if the cost was clear, and made her way to the attic bedroom.   
~  
“How did it happen?” Belphegor demanded. “How were you able to get him to make a pact with you so quickly?” He asked angrily. Harlow was confused. She thought that this was what he wanted. She saw the room behind him in disrepair. “Listen, I didn't mean for it to happen this fast! My Ex called and it turned into a shit show form there. Please Belphegor, I really can't handle someone else to be mad or upset with me tonight.” Harlow pleaded with him as she watched him pace. She was not sure why, but she felt a deep attachment to him and could not let him be mad at her. 

“Your ex called you? How many demons have you been with in the last two months?” Belphegor asked her. Accusing her of something she had not done. “What? Not an ex lover, my ex husband from the human world.” She answered him. He had not been there at the dinner table when it was revealed by asmo that she had been married. Belphegor stopped his pacing for a moment and looked at her through his barred door. “You were married? How many children did you have with this human?” His thoughts on marriage were archaic, only thinking of unions forged for furthering the population or political line. 

“None!” Harlow answered almost immediately. She had been married but she knew how to use birth control. When she had gotten married at 22 she had known she was not ready for children, and she knew she wouldn't be for a long time. “And why not?” His violet eyes pinned her to the spot. “I am just doing what you asked me to do.” She spat back at him. “If you are trying to imply something, I will not have it. I am going back to bed. Good night.” With that she turned on her heels, more tears stinging in her eyes, not quite sure why she was so upset.  
~  
As Harlow walked down the halls back to her room she managed to calm herself down. She wrapped her rob even more tightly around herself as she contemplated dealing with getting her next pact. She had made a promise and she wouldn’t break it, even if Belphegor was being a jerk.

She shuffled around a corner and collided with something solid. Bouncing off of the unforgiving force before her, she fell to the ground. “Ooff!” The figure standing above her made no move to help her up. It just seemed to be glaring down at her. Then it stretched out a hand “Harlow? What are you doing out of bed this late? And in this part of the house?” She recognized Lucifer's voice and reached for his gloved hand. “I couldn’t sleep and decided to take a walk.” Thanking whatever god was out there for the dark hallway, she did not want him to see her tear stained face. 

Beel had come to his room after they were done baking for the night and had explained to him how they had also made a pact. Initially, it had made him very angry to think that another one of his brothers had been tricked into making a pact with her. However, Beel had explained the fear and the genuine pain that Harlow had been feeling during the conversation with her Michael. Yes, her Michael because he refused to think of him as anything, or anyone else. 

“She was terrified, Lucifer. And her tears tasted like a storm. I didn’t know what else to do.” Beel had said. “Besides, you should have heard the way this prick was talking to her. I know she hasn't been in our lives long but I won't let anyone talk that way to someone close to me. Especially one that can bake like that.” Lucifer almost laughed at that, leave it to Beel to form a pact with a human who could cook. 

Helping her to her feet Lucifer said “Beel told me what happened.” She looked fixedly at her feet. “Are…” He started but she quickly cut him off. “I married him because I loved him ok? I know the concept is different here. I truly thought he loved me back but I was wrong, and even after it was over he tried to control me, tried to control me still! Devildom is the first place I have felt free in a long time. Somehow my human phone was able to work down here and he still found me. Beel made me feel safe, for once, in a very long time. Do not be upset with him for it.” He was startled by her reaction. “Be upset with me if you are going to be upset with anyone. Just don't take it out on him.” She sounded exhausted. He was only going to ask her if she was alright but sighed instead. “Let me walk you back to your room.” He offered. 

Politely she refused his offer, and he watched her disappear around the corner. Lucifer could tell that she was upset, but there was also more going on here than he knew about, that much he was sure of. Trying to shake off the feeling he made his way to Belphegor's tower, all the while thinking about who this Michael Prince was.   
~   
The Line went dead after the deep male voice said that he wouldn’t be able to reach her again. Micheal could not contain his anger, how dare this person hang up on him! How dare this person keep his wife from him. He wouldn’t let some piece of paper keep them apart, he knew he would be able to win her back some day. At least that is what he told himself, his pride not allowing him to remember that Harlow was one of the most stubborn humans he had ever met. Not acknowledging the fact that the instant he had slapped her he felt whatever bond they had disappeared fully. Refusing to remember the light that left her eyes in that moment, turning her eyes from sparkling emeralds to dull moss covered rocks. 

He hurled his phone across the room and let his golden wings loose from his glamor. Halo falling into place, and eyes showing electric blue. Alex just stood in the corner, his own silver wings making their presence known, silver halo and yellow eyes glowing. “I told you you shouldn't have fallen in love with her.” He said. 

Growling, Michael paced the room. “Shut up Uriel. Even if she is Lilith's heir, we don’t know for sure yet. There is still time before the prophecy comes true.”

“Yes, but why did you have to fall in love with the poor girl? Angels in love are even more territorial than Fae. You had to know this wasn’t going to end well Michael. And if the Demons already have her, there isn't much we can do to stop things from happening.” Uriel said to his brother. “Especially if those demons are Diavolo and Lucifer.”

Ripping the mirror off of the dresser, in an attempt to let off some steam Michael threw it across the room. “She is my wife. She has my wings. She WILL come back to me!” Lightning struck outside as if in warning for Uriel not to push things any farther. “Fine then, what is our next move? You have lost your only way of contacting her, where do we go from here?” Uriel asked, seriously wondering what the plan was. Michael answered quickly, “We go to Italy, if she isn't there we go back to the Celestial realm and try and contact Simeon and Luke. They are in Devildom as part of the exchange program Diavolo set up right? If Harlow is there they will be able to help us get to her before it’s too late.”

“If it isn’t already.” Uriel thought to himself as he watched Michael wonder the room some more, looking for any hint that would lead them to her. But Uriel knew better than that, he knew their fallen brothers were too clever to leave little more than their scent behind.


	13. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucifer and Diavolo get a closer look at Harlow's tattoo
> 
> Barb says some cryptic stuff.
> 
> Uriel is a better angel than Michael. 
> 
> Mention of Domestic Violence read cautiously.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not beta read, like always!
> 
> Hope you enjoy. Stay happy, healthy and safe my lovely readers!

The rest of the weekend went by quickly. Asmo and Harlow had their spa day, he insisted on her telling him every detail of all of her past relationships. He lived for the drama. He told her some about his past relationships as well, in much more explicit detail. This made her blush several times, realizing her life was very vanilla in comparison. They talked about makeup and hairstyles and it was like she was hanging out with her best friends from high school. That same night she played video games and watched anime with Levi until she fell asleep in his bean bag chair, only to find herself back in her room the next morning. Sunday she finished her paper and got the stamp of approval from Satan. Then the rest of the day was hers. 

Going over to her desk she pulled out a pen and a notebook. Harlow began to outline a new book. She would market it as fiction, but in reality it would be based on her experience here. She was done outlining through chapter 40 when she moved from her bed to the floor. Spreading her papers out. This helped her see if there were any gaps in the story and physically walking through the story gave her a clearer picture. A nock came to her door. “Come in!” she called out and in came Lucifer followed by Diavolo. 

Harlow had had a few interactions with the prince since being in devildom, one of which was introducing him to the human concept of greeting friends with a hug. He seemed to enjoy that custom well enough, much to Lucifer's chagrin. Diavolo walked over to Harlow and wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her tightly. It wasn’t until she patted him on his back and said “I cant breath”, that he let her go. “Ah, sorry about that. I forget my own strength sometimes.” Looking around her room he saw the papers laid out around the room. “What is all of this?” He asked her. “I was about to ask her the same question.” Lucifer cut in. The room was a mess of paper. Taking a look at her hands she had ink stains up and down her arms. Harlow was only wearing a tank top and shorts and socks, he would never understand her constant need to wear lounge clothing day in and day out. Not that she looked bad, just ill prepared. The day she had gone out with Satan though was a nice refresher though and he wished she dressed like that more often. 

“Oh, um sorry. This is my writing process. I out line and write most of my books by hand before typing them up.” Harlow said looking down at her feet and rubbing the back of her neck. “Oh yes, I remember you saying that is your profession in the human world. And you are rather good at it!” Diavolo said. “I wouldn't say that but thank you for thinking so.” Harlow said. “Is there something I can do for you?” She asked them. “Ah yes, Lucifer informed me that you had somewhat of a difficult evening the other night and you have made a pact with Beelzebub.” Harlow looked at Lucifer questioningly. “Yes, I did. He made the pact of his own accord, he offered! I didn’t even ask!” Harlow felt the words leave her, she wasn't sure why she was being defensive. She truly didn’t think that she had done anything wrong, at least not with this pact. “You aren’t in trouble Harlow.” Lucifer said calmly. “We are concerned on what effects this may have on you is all. You are a human with very little magic and creating one pact can be dangerous for humans with no magic.”

“Solomon has 73 pacts I thought…” Harlow started. Diavolo cut in, “Indeed he does. But he is a centuries old sorcerer and incredibly powerful. His body can handle that amount of power. Have you tried to use your control over the brothers you have pacts with yet?” 

“No, and I don't want to.” Harlow answered honestly, she saw one of Lucifer's eye brows raise at that. If she didn't want to control them, what was the point of the pacts in the first place. “I’d like to see their demon marks and see what power is in them and see how and if it has affected your own magical strength.” Diavolo said, Lucifer nodded because he was just as curious as well.  
Blushing Harlow said, “Oh, ok, um let me go to the restroom then and grab a towel. I am going to have to take my shirt off to show you.” She disappeared before they could say anything. Both demons looked at each other. Diavolo grinned and Lucifer rolled his eyes. When she came form the restroom she had a towel hugged tightly to her chest. She turned around and said, “Do you see the three marks in between the angels wings? The first two are Mammon and Levi’s and the one that is lower down is Beels.” Diavolo stepped closer to her and brushed a hand over the three marks, getting a closer look at them. And if he were being honest, a closer look at her wing tattoo. 

Lucifer stepped closer as well, paying particular attention to the wings, when he had seen them the first day he had thought that they were similar to what his had been, but up on closer inspection and now that he could see the full thing he noticed that they were much larger and had a golden tone to them. He reached a hand out to touch the tattoo but Diavolo stopped him. Wordlessly telling him not to. Diavolo himself didn't touch the wings, only hovering his fingers above them. Harlow was becoming restless, she was not used to being topless around well, anyone but herself. “Are you done back there? Can I put my shirt back on? Am I going to be alright?” 

The demons each took a step back from her, “Yes, everything appears to be fine. It looks like your body has absorbed the power of the 3 demons well. As for your other tattoo, when did you get it and how long have you had it?” Diavolo asked. 

“I have had it for 6 years now, it was a drunk mistake. I don't remember getting them actually but apparently I had been insistent on getting them the night that Michael proposed to me.” Harlow said as she walked to the bathroom and put her shirt back on. They were not her only tattoo but they were her only big tattoo that she had a hard time covering from time to time. “That same night?” Lucifer asked her. “Yes? Is that a problem?” 

“No.” He stated simply. Sometimes she said things like that, things that both angered and excited him. She was kind, yes but she was by far one of the most stubborn humans he had ever met and she pushed her boundaries with him. Then he added “We will let you get back to what it is that you were doing.” Diavolo gave her another quick but crushing hug and said “See you soon Low!” and they both left her room.  
~  
Lucifer and Diavolo headed to the palace. They both agreed that they needed to discuss this with Barbatos. Though he was a butler, he was also a very powerful demon and a trusted adviser to the prince. 

“So you got a closer look at the wings?” Barbatos asked them as they sat down for tea. “Who do the wings belong to Lucifer?” 

Lucifer lifted his tea cup and took a quick sip, looking the butler in the eye and then at the prince he said. “They are indeed the Archangel Michael’s wings.” The confession tasted bitter in his mouth. “But my question is, why her? Overall she is an unexceptional human. I am still trying to figure out how she is the one who checked all of the boxes for the program.” 

“Surely you don't mean that Lucifer, she must have some good qualities. She is also by far one of the most beautiful humans I have ever seen as well.” Diavolo said. “It’s a shame to know that she isn't one of Solomon’s descendants. He mentioned that his lines died out over 200 years ago. And he has not made any moves to create new ones since.” Barbatos nodded in agreement. “I believe there is more to her than we can see currently. But my instincts are telling me that she is important and will make a formidable ally in the years to come. My power does not allow me to see into her future as much as it does for you or I but there will be great pain and suffering but there will be endless amounts of hope, love and happiness for our 3 worlds. Both of which have to do with her.” The prince and Lucifer looked at each other. “I will continue to look into her bloodline lucifer. However, keep an eye out on her, especially around the Semion and Luke. I have a feeling Michael may come for her sooner or later.”

Lucifer's lip curled and he let out a low snarl. “Then he would be making a grave mistake.” Harlow was his to protect for the next year and he intended one doing exactly that. He did not enjoy his things being taken from him, and he was not sure when exactly he had started to think of her as his, but she was. He was not about to give that up. “It would be indeed.” Diavolo agreed, he knew Lucifer was thinking because he had had the same thoughts. “Also I noticed that the wings are a marking to claim her, much like demon markings for the pacts. But she said that she does not remember getting them. Is it possible for an angle to claim someone without them knowing?” 

Lucifer thought about it for a moment, “Yes, all humans have to do is agree to be theirs. The angel does not have to specify what that means. By accepting his proposal, Harlow agreed to be Michaels, he just chose to omit what that really meant.” 

“Why didn’t they disappear after she divorced him then?” Diavolo asked.

“Because he was not willing to give her up as well. Angels are some of the most territorial creatures in the universe and bonds like that on their side are almost impossible to break.”

“Does the mark offer any protection? Is it dangerous for demons to touch?” Diavolo asked.

“Only if she allows it to, but that would mean letting him in again. From what I can tell she has no interest in that. If she wanted the bond then yes, it could be, but she doesn't so we should be safe to touch it if the occasion arrives.” Lucifer answered.  
~  
Once Lucifer had left to return home Diavolo turned to Barbatos. “I want to keep a very close eye on this situation. We are getting to the time of year when many of our holidays happen in Devildom, but I want every excuse for Harlow to be here at the palace. I trust Lucifer and his brothers but until we find out what is going on with Harlow I want to be close by to keep them all safe.”

“Should we hold a retreat here with all of them and the residents of purgatory hall next weekend my lord?” Barbatos asked. “Wonderful idea Barb! See to it that it is arranged.”  
~  
Michael and Uriel sat outside the colosseum in Rome. They had had no luck finding Harlow and had no luck getting in touch with Simeon. “We may have to return to the Celestial realm if we are going to have any luck finding her.” Uriel said. “I know, but if Lucifer has her, then it's over and I have failed.” Never in his life had Michael failed at something. “We will find her Michael. But when we do, you have to promise to keep your temper in check.” 

Michael mulled it over, and he had to admit that if it weren't for his temper, they would not be in this mess no. But he did not like when things that were his were taken from him. Uriel had only been there as backup in case something like this happened. And it did happen. Uriel had been instrumental in helping Harlow free herself from Michael but Michael didn't know that. As much as Uriel loved his brother, he hated the way he was with the human girl. Marking her as soon as she accepted his proposal, she had passed out from the pain. Uriel replaced the memory with a hazy drunken night full of love. Uriel had watched over her from afar until he couldn’t watch any more, planting the seed in her mind that Michael was seeing someone else (which he was.) Urging her to head straight home one night after a work session in the office. Then he had opened his apartment door wide when she came to him and explained what had happened. Michael had been lucky that his actions did not cause any permanent physical damage. Uriel was able to heal memories and very minor injuries, not bones. Harlow only remembered being hit once and then being at his apartment, but when she arrived she had been covered in bruises. Michael also only remembered one hit before his sense of righteousness took over, which always caused him to black out.

“When we find her, you are going to have to keep your promise and stay away from her.” Uriel said. The finality in his tone did not sit well with Michael but he agreed to the terms. For now.


	14. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short fluff chapter tonight friends! Not beta read!
> 
> They get invited to stay for a long weekend at the palace.
> 
> Harlow is told she is not allowed to wear leggings. 
> 
> Lucifer tries to be annoying but Harlow really doesn't catch on and uses him to pick out clothes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so short. However, I am hoping to post at least 4 more times this week. Next week is a holiday where I live and my husband and I are traveling to see his family and I am not sure how much time I will have to write. 
> 
> Please enjoy and I hope you all are happy, healthy and safe!

“Are you insane?” She watched as Mammon did his best to pick the lock on Lucifer's door. “I’m out, I want no part in this Mammon.”

“No! Harlow, you have to stay, you are my good luck charm!” He whined at her. “Nope! It will be a cold day in hell when I get caught stealing from Lucifer, or anyone else for that matter.” He had talked her into going to Lucifer's room with him, saying he was going to ask for his credit cards back. She agreed thinking that there would be an actual conversation between the two of them, and perhaps she would moderate if needed. But this… nope! She was somewhat of a stickler for the rules, bending them from time to time but never anything criminal or life threatening. This was both. “Lucky for you, you are in hell, and it is in fact a cold day. We are going to get 4in of Devildoms version of snow tonight.” Mammon said. 

Harlow looked up and sighed heavily. Her eyes met a set of red ones, they pinned her sharply in place and she knew she was in loads of trouble, or at least an accessory to the crime that Mammon was committing. Mammon chuckled, he failed to see that Lucifer was approaching with Diavolo and Barbatos. As he felt the lock click. “Yes!” He cried out triumphantly as he went to turn the door handle. Harlow was slowly taking steps backwards, all 3 males' eyes shifted from her to Mammon. She held her hands up and shook her head trying to single that she didn't want any part of what was happening. 

When Lucifer's hand wrapped around Mammon's shoulder, and Mammon realized that it was not Harlow she made her break for it. Or she tried to. But Lucifer's commanding voice froze her in her tracks. “Do not run Harlow. Walk slowly to the living room. We will meet you there.” Lucifer slipped into his demon form, which she had only seen once before. Harlow's jaw dropped, a small gasp left her mouth. Diavolo broke away from the trio. “I will escort her, Lucifer. Barb, help him however he needs to deal with Mammon.”

Diavolo took her elbow and walked quickly away. They were silent until they rounded the corner. “So, when lucifer shifts into his demon form and is angry, does he have a natural instinct to chase whatever is running away from him?” Harlow asked. It had been a few weeks since she had last seen him and things were very quiet around the house for the most part aside from the usual shenanigans. Diavolo smiled at that, as if it were one of the funniest things he had heard in a long time “Yes, that is exactly why. Though I would hate to see that happen. You being there means you are at fault as well. Don’t expect to get off that easy.”

Harlow sighed. “I thought as much.” Diavolo let go of her elbow and paused as he watched her walk a few steps in front of him. Today she was wearing the same shirt she had been brought here in with the open back, but she wore an undershirt so he couldn’t see her tattoo again. Frowning he took a few large strides to catch up with her. “Harlow, I didn’t get to ask you the other day, but are you alright? From what Lucifer has told me it took Beel several hours to get you to calm down.” Flushing, Harlow looked at her feet as he continued to walk the halls to the living room. “He really does tell you everything doesn’t he. Yes I am fine. I honestly hadn't thought about it for a few days now.” Laughing she continued “I actually have had a nice break here from having to think about or having to deal with him. The only thing I am worried about is my job. I am hoping that there is a way I can somehow work remotely down here. Meet deadlines for Alex and make sure my next book is published on time. But that would require me to get my laptop and notes from the human world.”

Diavolo thought about that for a moment. “I think that could be arranged, but I will send some of the brothers to get it for you. I’d prefer you spend your full year here in Devildom.” He didn’t want to tell her that he was worried if she went back Michael could very well be waiting for her. And he was not about to give his friend back to someone who had marked her without her knowing that he had done so. Harlow shrugged at his answer, he liked that about her. For the most part she didn’t question his or Lucifer's requests. “That’s fine,” she laughed slightly, “I kind of don't want to go back until things are done anyway.” 

Good, that was good she was feeling comfortable about being there now. She had been the only one taken there without her knowing what was going on. Diavolo had reached out to Michael, Gabriel and Raphael as the leaders of the Celestial realm and Solomon was an easy chose for a human exchange student, but seeing as the Human realm was far more populated and they didn't have a hierarchy like the other realms he chose to pick a human at random. Someone between the ages of 21 and 30, because developmentally the age was similar to theirs. But demons and angels remained in that “age group” for thousands of years. 

They chatted the whole way to the living room. When they got there the rest of the brothers besides Lucifer and Mammon were there waiting. They all sat and talked waiting for the other two and the butler to get there. It only took about a half hour or so but when they got there mammon was white as a ghost and said nothing quietly sitting next to Harlow. She noticed that when he sat, he gave a small wince and it made her curious to ask, but she held her tongue thinking better of it. 

Once everyone was situated Diavolo began to speak, “We have decided to hold a long weekend retreat at the palace! It will be 3 nights and 4 days. Luke, Solomon, and Simeon will be there as well! The point of having, Harlow, Luke, Solomon, and Simeon here is to build relationships with the two worlds and this will give us the opportunity to do so!” While this was true he wanted to see how the angels interacted with Harlow to see if they knew anything about her relationship with Michael. 

“We have already made the proper arrangements and you will be heading over to the palace in the next 3 hours. Please pack the following…” Barbatos said, listing off items they would need while they were there. One of the things that was required was cocktail attire for dinner the first two nights and one formal outfit for the last night there as they would be holding a ball in the honor of the exchange students. Then a list of various other things and then the final thing that cut Harlow to her core “No leggings, joggers, sweatpants or yoga pants are to be worn outside of the sleeping chambers.” He look pointedly at her as he said it. 

When his attention was no longer on her and when she thought no one else was looking she stuck her tongue out at him. They said their goodbyes and the brothers all began rushing around. Harlow made to stand but she was met with a hand clasping her elbow pulling her to her room “Don’t think I didn't see what you did just now Harlow. You will be on your best behavior.” Lucifer said as he guided her down the hall. “I am afraid your punishment for helping Mammon attempt to break into my room will need to wait until we get back. Hurry and pack, I expect you to be the first one ready.”

“I wasn’t trying to help him!” She argued. Pulling herself free of him she said “Also Barbatos deserved that! No leggings is a dumb rule. Besides you all freaked out the last time I wore something different. And asking a woman to be ready for a long weekend faster than anyone else? Really? I have to plan these cocktail outfits out and what to wear during the day, especially because leggings are off the table. I also do not have anything formal to wear.”

“Then I would suggest that you get started.” They had reached her door. She opened it and he leaned against the door frame. Watching her as she began to dig begs from her closet. She grabbed jewelry and then jeans and some nicer looking tops. Different from the ones she normally wore he noted. Then she noticed him watching. “What?” She asked him slightly annoyed. “I wanted to make sure you wouldn’t pack any leggings.” he lied, in truth, he was enjoying watching her rush around, he was enjoying annoying her. Not nearly the punishment he would normally give but it could start as a slow burn. “Fine, but if you are going to be here you are going to help.”

“What? No…” She pulled him in and closed the door behind them. She laid out 4 dresses. “Which 2 do you think for dinner on the first two nights?” She asked him. The first dress was a soft pink with a tulle skirt and chiffon top. It went down to the knees and had a deep v cut neckline with cap shoulders. The next was a red halter top that showed slightly less cleavage but would hug her body down to her mid thigh. It had a split in the skirt in the back. The next was a black lace dress. It was strapless and was tight at the waist but puffed out from there going down to her mid caf. The final one was a green dress that had one sleeve and then left the other exposed. It also went to her knees. He pointed at the green and black ones and she quickly put them in her bag. She grabbed accessories, including the hair pin he had given her and she sighed. “I really don't have anything for a formal night.” 

“Bring the pink one just in case.” Lucifer said then. “Good call.” She said. “Um hey, I am really sorry about earlier today. I didn’t know that he was going to do that.” She continued to pack. And he continued to watch her. Soon though there was a knock on the door. “Come in!” She called. 

Asmo came waltzing in with a dress bag in hand. “I have brought you something formal to wear but you have to do me a favor and not open the bag until the last night!”


	15. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Solomon grants Harlow his power, though he isn't sure she needs it.
> 
> Not Beta Read!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for another short, and mostly fluff chapter. I had wanted to get 2 chapters up today but that didn't happen. I am super sleepy today.
> 
> Enjoy, I will do my best to get a longer more exciting chapter up tomorrow. 
> 
> Hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe!

They all stood in the entryway. Harlow listened to the room assignments and she had been paired with Asmo and Simeon. Mammon did his best to convince his brother to trade but in the end it didn't work out. As they all walked to their rooms Simeon made conversation with Harlow. “So, Harlow, I hear that in the human world you have written and published quite a few books! They have all also done very well.” She blushed. She wrote because she loved it, not because she thought she was good at it. She wasn’t Jane Austen or Virginia Wolfe. But she loved it and she loved to tell stories about the worlds she made up. Shearing creativity was one of the greatest gifts a human could have. She would also never forget one of the things that a professor in her undergrad told her. “The best ideas are in the graveyard, Harlow. Don’t let that be you.” She had consulted that professor before beginning the process to publish her first book. Michael had not been too sure about it, though he never was when it came to her writing. He liked it, but it was always “missing” something. 

“I wouldn’t say that, but I would be happy to get you a copy of one or two of my books if you would like. They are thrillers and murder mysteries though, they may not be something you would want to hear about.” 

“Oh those are some of my favorites!” Simeon said excitedly. “Have you read ‘The Girl in the Red Room’?” He asked her. Well yes… yes she had, that was her first book. They had published all of her books under the pen name of Lilith Prince. It had been Michaels Idea and seeing as how when they had gotten married she had kept her maiden name of Williams, there was no way anyone could track the name to her. 

“Yeah, I have read that one… What did you think of it?” She asked, not wanting to give it away. She loved hearing people's honest opinions of it. “Oh it is one of my favorites. One of my higher ups brought it back from the human world for me to read.” They continued in silence. In all honesty, Harlow did not think much of the comment. If she was able to be making a sandwich in the kitchen one moment and in Devildom the next, why couldn't angels read books form the human world. 

Asmo had been texting with Solomon, not truly paying attention to the conversation. When he glanced up he said, “Oh! It looks like we have made it to our room.” Room 7. Swinging open the door they all followed him in. The room was large enough to house 3 queen size beds, 3 wardrobes and have one attached bathroom. The bathroom had a large shower and claw foot tub and 3 sinks. It was all simple but exactly what you would expect in a palace bedroom. Harlow made her way to the bed that was closest to the window. She began to put down her things but Asmo said “Darling, wouldn’t you be more comfortable in the middle bed? That is where I will be and I would love some company.”

Harlow rolled her eyes hard. She loved Asmo, but sometimes he was too much. “I’ll be ok over here, but you are sweet to offer.” She said. Simeon laughed and then went on to talk about how Asmo had not changed much since he fell from the Celestial Realm. Harlow had almost forgotten that all of the brothers, except for Satan, used to be angels. She thought it interesting because while she was married, she had an affinity for them, loved them even. Her favorite were the cherubs, which is what Luke reminded her of 90% of the time. As the conversation continued she tooned them out and began to hang her clothing in the wardrobe and fold things nicely. Still butt hurt about not being able to wear leggings she slipped into the bathroom to change into a maxi skirt, because let's be honest, those are the leggings of the skirt world. She threw on a lace top and a cardigan and proceeded to take a book out and read while the angel and demon reminisce. 

The quiet time didn't last long however. Their door burst open and in walked the rest of the exchange students, and all of the brothers except for Lucifer. “Come on Harlow, let's go shopping...I mean exploring!” Mammon came in and grabbed her hand pulling her to the door. “She is going to stick close to my side, you aren’t going to get her into any more trouble Mammon.” Satan said as he pulled on Harlow's other hand. “Normies! Don't you think Harlow would rather hang out in the room and watch anime with me?” Levi said to them and then looked at her, “I brought my laptop. We can hang out while the rest of these dipshits get in trouble.” Then Beel chimed in, “We can go get food! Find out where the kitchen is and then maybe you can make some more of those cookies.” 

Harlow stood and looked at all of them and couldn’t decide what she wanted to do. When her eyes locked with Solomon, he grinned at her as if he promised to offer an escape from the mess she was in. Keeping her eyes on his she said, “I think I am going to take a walk in the gardens with Solomon.” His smile broadened then and he reached out his hand to her. Loosening herself from the brothers grips she took his hand and they left the room. Leaving the rest of them behind. 

“Thank you.” Harlow said to him as they walked into the garden. “For what? I didn’t do anything other than smile and offer my hand.” He paused and then continued, “But I understand how overwhelming it can be around the demon brothers and the angels. Sometimes it's nice to go on a quiet walk alone.” Harlow laughed at that. When was the last time she was truly alone? She had probably not been alone since she had been to Devildom, not entirely anyway. She had lived by herself for 2 years and living with that many people she hadn't realized, was exhausting. “They barely let me shower or sleep alone.” She walked in front of him and glanced over her shoulder as he looked at her. “I’d kill to be able to walk by myself in a garden. But thank you for understanding.”

Solomon frowned at that. “You have made a pact with three of the brothers right? Can you command at least those 3 to leave you be from time to time?” Harlow stiffened. She hated the word ‘command’, it made it sound like she was incharge of everything. But she wasnt and she didn't want to be! She wanted the demons to have freewill, though if one of them tried to eat her she would make the command for them to stop. Though she wasn't sure that would do any good, her lack of magical ability may keep her from even coming close to being able to control them if given the occasion. “Solomon, you forget I have no magic.” Pondering this for a moment he said, “Then let me let you borrow my powers for a day. What do you think?”

“Is that even possible?” Harlow asked skeptically. 

“Sure it is. Just give me your hands, I’ll recite a few words and my power will be yours.” 

She gave her hands to him and as he recited the words she felt something hot and sharp shoot up her spine. She winced and saw that Solomon's brow was sweating. When he was done he looked at her slightly confused but then put a smile on. “There! Now you should be able to use magic! Well at least for today. Now you had best get changed for dinner, Barb won't be happy if we keep him waiting.”

They had not been out there for very long she thought but she wasn't about to question him. They said their goodbyes and when she turned around she did not feel his eyes fixed on her back. There was no way she was that powerful, and if she was, whatever angel marked her had almost completely doused her power. He had offered her a temporary fix but the only way to break the cap on her power would be to make a pact with all 7 brothers or have the angels mark removed. 

Diavolo and Lucifer came out from one of the bushes flanking either side of Solomon. “So?” Diavolo asked. 

“So, that woman has greater power locked inside her than I could ever imagine. However, it is being blocked or capped at its absolute minimum because she has been “Blessed” by an angel. But you both already knew that didn’t you.” Solomon said. “Tell me, who has she been marked by and why?”

Lucifer's mouth formed a thin line before he answered. “Harlow was married in the human world to the archangel Michael. The why though, we aren't sure.” Solomon's eyes went wide. “What? She is that Harlow?” Diavolo was the one to speak then, “Have you heard of her?”

“Yes, Simeon loves her books, though he tends to refer to her as her pen name or Michael’s wife, but he has let slip her first name a few times. He has also let it slip that Gabriel and Raphael have been running the Celestial realm since Michael was away on a special assignment. But his special assignment was being very closely monitored by Uriel.”

“That would make sense as to why I only got responses from Gabriel and Raph for the exchange program.” Diavolo said, understanding crossing over his features. 

“Say nothing to anyone about this Solomon.” Lucifer said. Both Diavolo and Solomon looked at him in surprise, the tone of his voice was lethal. Lucifer didn’t like to hear that Uriel was involved. That meant that Michael was out of control and his sense of righteousness had gotten the better of him more than once. When that happened, Michael tended to get violent with the people around him. His two companions were staring at him before he finally said, “We have to keep her relationship with him a secret from the other angels. We need to figure out why Michael targeted her.”


	16. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asmo gets himself, Harlow and the rest stuck in the labyrinth under the castle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a longer chapter for sure! Some fluff, some plot, some romance, but no smut. 
> 
> Not Beta Read!!!
> 
> Hopefully going to get one more up before next week! But week, there may be only one update, if any. Sorry about that. We will be visiting my husbands family. 
> 
> I hope everyone is happy, healthy, and safe. Thanks for reading.

Harlow wandered the castle, enjoying the chance to be by herself. She wasn’t sure why Solomon hadn’t followed her when he told her to go get ready for dinner but he had always been a little odd. She had originally thought that he was up to something when they had first met but once she got to know him, she learned that that was just who he was. 

On the way over to the castle the brothers had told her stories of what the castle was like. Some good and some bad. Harlow made note though to do her best to stay out of the labyrinth that Mammon was kind enough to tell horror stories about. He also mentioned a torcher chamber that Barbatos had… which after he had banned legging, she wouldn’t doubt that that was true. She wandered the halls and admired the art work. There was one particular painting of a woman that seemed to call out to her. She studied it for a moment wondering who she was. Her concentration was broken though when she heard arguing from coming down the hall. 

“Why don't you just shut the hell up for a second!” Mammon. She knew that voice anywhere, “Well if you weren't so stupid maybe you wouldn’t need a baby sitter.” Satan. Sighing, Harlow made her way to try and see if she could calm them down. She swore sometimes she felt more like a nanny or a preschool teacher than a roommate when it came to the brothers. She actively wanted to work with them all on their problem solving skills. 

“Hey, what is all of this about?” She asked.

“Mammon was trying to figure out where the crown jewels are being held.” Satan said.

“Keep your damn mouth shut Satan!” Mammon spat.

“How about you keep your damn hands to yourself! You are one stupid fuck if you think you could get away with something like that.” Satan Retorted. 

Grinding her teeth Harlow reached up and took each of them by the ear. “Hey! Ow, ow, ow.” Both demons said in unison. Harlow brought their heads down so they were both eye level with her. “Listen to me, you two, you are going to knock this shit off. You are both grown demons, you are not children. Mammon, stealing is wrong. I get that greed is your sin, but for once in your life pick something other than valuables to be greedy about. Just for this trip. Satan, Mammon does not respond to name calling. When he doesn't respond you get more angry. I get that wrath is your sin but try a different tactic while we are here. This is not how you act, and I am younger than all of you by thousands of years and I know how to behave when I am guests in someone else's home. This is the first trip or retreat I have been on in more than 5 years and I have every intention of making the best of it. Do. Not. Ruin. That. For. Me.” 

As she lectured them, the rest of the demons and exchange students gathered watched. Beel watched eagerly as he ate popcorn. Levi was doing his best to hold in his laughter. Asmo was beaming. The angels watched in shock. Solomon, Diavolo, and Barbatos all looked on, in amusement, finding it interesting to see someone other than Lucifer scolding them. Lucifer though, he was actually impressed by how well she handled his brothers. He would have words with them, that was for sure, but for now he was fascinated by how she got them under control. 

“I couldn't have said it better myself. Mammon, Satan, go to your room. I will be there shortly.” Lucifer cut in when he sensed that her lecture was done. Harlow let go of their ears and turned around to finally see the crowd that had gathered behind her. As soon as she did so Levi and Asmo lost it. Both laughing hysterically at how the tiny human had put them both in their place. “Oh, um, sorry. I didn’t see you all there.” Harlow blushed. “But these two were going at it. Is there some kind of problem solving game scheduled for this retreat? I think they would benefit from it.”  
~  
“If I catch her having to scold you both one more time you will both be hung up in the stairwell until Christmas.” Lucifer seethed. Mammon and Satan knelt on the floor before him, heads hung low. “Yes sir.” They both said. Mammon was used to this. Satan on the other hand was not and it took everything in his power to not lash out. He wanted to be able to participate in all of the scheduled activities. If only to frustrate Harlow more. She was so… So beautiful when she was cross with him. 

Satan wanted to test that boundary with her, wanted to see how cross she could make him. He was going to make up any excuse to be with her, and find anything he could just to feel the same wrath she had felt just now with him. That day in the library, when she was late to study with him, he loved the feeling of control he had over her when he surprised her. It could be fun to see a back and forth between the two of them he thought. 

Mammons thought process was somewhere else entirely. He was used to his brothers yelling at him, but harlow? No. He couldn’t have his Treasure mad at him. He was already thinking of ways to make it up to her. He had gotten her a bracelet and noticed she had not taken it off. Maybe if he got her a necklace she would forgive him. But not just any necklace, one that had yellow topaz as the stone, yellow was his favorite color and he knew it would look good on her. He would engrave it with “Love forever, Mammon.” No that wasn't good enough, “The Great Mammon loves you.” Yes, that would be good. 

“Get dressed for dinner. If we keep Barbatos waiting, my punishment won't be the only one you need to worry about.” Both of his brothers shot to his feet at that. They had heard the rumors, that were only rumors. Lucifer loved to watch the squirm though.   
~  
Harlow waited for Asmo to zip up the back of her dress. She braided the top part of her hair into a half up half down look and what she left down was curled into long beach waves. Then she went for her signature look for her make up. Light foundation, blush, winged eyeliner and bright red lips. When she turned to face him after she put on her pearls, his lips parted slightly. “My god Harlow, where have you been hiding this pinup girl all this time?” 

“I like the look and wear it on occasion. Actually I wore it to a premier once, this exact outfit. A movie in the human world was based loosely off of one of my books. Though I write under a pen name so no one knew who I was. It was still fun though.” 

“Darling you need to dress this way more often. Everyday is a premier day, if you know what I mean.” Asmo put his arm around her shoulder and brought his DDD up to take a selfie. Harlow smiled brightly, and winked at the camera. “One more!” Asmo said and she turned her head and placed a red lipped kiss on his cheek. She was comfortable around Asmo. She had set her boundaries and for the most part he respected them. Every so often he pushed them but nothing over the top. “Oh is that how this is going to be?” He said as he turned to her and kissed her full on the mouth. Dipping her down low and snapping a picture of it from the side. 

He brought her back up and steadied her. Her feet were in heels and though she had been kissed by both Satan and mammon, she had not had her breath taken away in years. Hell after that kiss she wasn’t sure she had had her breath taken away ever. “You can't tempt me like that darling and not expect your affections to be returned in 10 fold.” Asmo said eyes flashing pink as he brushed away the red from his lips as best he could. He gave her a once over and then called to the bathroom, “Simeon, are you almost done in there? We need to get going here soon!” 

Simeon stepped out of the bathroom wearing black pants and blue top and a tie. He looked so different from what Harlow was used to seeing him in. She beamed at him. “You look great Simeon. Asmo, give me your DDD so I can take a picture of the two of you.” She said. “Oh no, not without you!” Simeon said as he pulled her between the two of them. She beamed and felt both angel and demon wrap their arms around her back.   
~  
Dinner went surprisingly well. The food was amazing and the wine was on a constant poor it seemed. Mammon and Satan were on their best behavior. The other brothers, aside from Lucifer, were not. Beel tried to finish 6 helpings along with what was left on everyone else's plates, Levi kept looking at her, almost as if he were angry about something. She would have to ask him why later. She knew he didn’t like to be called out in front of people, she could handle talking to him on her own. He was going to hate it but she cared deeply for him and wanted to make sure he was happy. 

Everyone was laughing and having the best time. Barbatos put on some music and with a snap of his fingers the table was cleared and the table was pushed to the side. Couches and chairs appeared. The room was set up for continued leisure and talking. Harlow made her way to the record player and she swayed slightly along with the music. “Do you like dancing Harlow?” Diavolo asked. 

Diavolo had given her a few spins around before she had decided to head back to her room for the evening. “I have never seen you dressed up like this, might I say you look like an absolute princess.” On their last spin around he swooped her into a hug and kissed her on the cheek. When he placed her on her feet again he turned her to face the door. “Goodnight Harlow.” He said in her ear as he gave her a light push. 

Dazedly she walked down the hall. Soon flanked by Solomon, Asmo, and Mammon. “Come on Harlow, you don't have to go to bed yet.” Mammon said. He took her hand lightly and pulled her close to him. “Oh no! No you don’t Mammon. Harlow is going back to our room tonight.” Asmo said as he pulled her back to his side. Solomon laughed. She pulled herself loose from the two brothers to walk ahead of them. She didn't want to be in the middle of another one of their arguments. 

They walked past the portrait of the woman from earlier that day and stopped. “You know, you know what?” She slurred. Ankles wobbling in her heels she pointed at the portrait “This woman, she was beautiful. I am not sure what happened, but I feel like her story is a sad one.” She walked up and touched the beautiful woman's face. 

The woman in the portrait blinked. Harlow blinked back. Then the woman in the painting and Harlow both started screaming. This drew the attention of everyone else and all the people in the dining room came rushing to the area. Asmo and Mammon rushed to pull Harlow away from the painting. “What the fuck?! Why is the portrait screaming, how is it able to move?!” Harlow asked hurriedly. Asmo looked closely at the painting and recognition danced across his face. “Helena? Is that you?”

The rest of the events were a blur from there. Lucifer had begun to explain that she was a powerful witch and then that she and Asmo had a relationship in the past that did not end well. She explained that she could still use her power and began to suck him into the painting. Asmo grabbed a hold of Solomon and Harlow. Mammon grabbed a hold of Harlow, and beel and Levi quickly grabbed a hold of mammon. They weren't about to let her get sucked in to some unknown place, but ultimately were sucked in themselves.   
~  
Casting a quick light spell Solomon looked around the hallway. Unconscious beside him was Harlow, but the rest of the group was nowhere to be seen. She laid on her side on the floor, hair extending out above her head. Her upper back was showing and he could see Mammon’s and half of Levi's marks along with the top part of the wings. He was surprised that Simeon had not seen them or said anything if he had seen them. He sat her up and gently shook her shoulders.

“Hey, Harlow? Come on wake up.” She moved slightly. “Harlow, come on.” He said again. This time her eyes fluttered open. They took a second to focus, “Solomon? What happened? Where are we?” She asked him. Shaking his head he said “I don't know but it’s only you and I that are here.” He looked down both ends of the hallway and saw that there was no end in sight. This was not good, he had a sinking feeling that they were somehow in the labyrinth under the castle. Taking a deep breath in he said “We are going to have to use our pacts to bring the brothers to us. You have my power now, if I show you how, do you think you can do it? It would take years to find all of them if we tried to look for them, and we need to get out of here as quickly as possible.”

Harlow nodded and watched carefully as he called Asmo to his side. Then repeating his words, Harlow called Beel, Levi and Mammon to her. There was a rush of power that flowed through her, it wasn’t painful, but it wasn't comfortable either. There was a piece of her that felt relief as she used the magic. However, there was another part of her, something external that pulled on the power. Trying to keep it locked away in whatever corner it had been stored. When the brothers were in front of her she reached out to Beel and used him to steady herself. She took a deep breath and looked over at Solomon. “I felt what you felt, Harlow. We will have to discuss that later, for now though we need to get moving. Something dangerous is close by and I don't want to find out what it is.”   
~  
Uriel and Michael sat back in Harlow’s apartment. They watched the door, monitored Uriel’s phone and Email. Harlow had requested to work remotely for an extended amount of time and he was her editor, who had no problem with it. She maintained her story that she was in Italy, but thought about traveling to Spain soon, or to France. She was not sure. Michael sulked, his anger cut him like a dull blade every time something came through and it wasn’t from Harlow, or from one of his fellow leaders. 

They were having trouble getting in touch with Gabriel and Raphael. They had been the ones to approve the program. Michael and Uriel were not sure who they had sent to be part of the program though. They needed to figure that out so they could contact them separately. Michael had not spoken to Lucifer since his fall and he despised Diavolo. He would not contact them for help. Even if he had spoken to them he could not give away who she was or what she was. 

That is when he felt it a tug on his back, drawing on him to keep the power he had locked away in check. Reaching for the invisible string he pulled on it to help force the lock back in place. But there was something slightly different from this power, it was not fully Harlow's but someone else's as well. He pulled a bit harder and was sent flying as a shock was sent down the now barley existing bond. Uriel watched, eyes wide with shock. Michael stood, eyes glowing and looked at Uriel. “They have unlocked part of her power.” walking out onto the balcony of Harlow's apartment, he shifted fully and took off into the night. Uriel not too far behind.


	17. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Major story deviation in this chapter
> 
> Solomon is hurt in the labyrinth and tells Harlow something he probably shouldn't. Harlow is upset and confused. The pieces fall into place for the angels in devildom and Harlow is a wanted woman by the archangels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers! Sorry for no updates last week. I hope you are all doing well and staying happy, healthy and safe. 
> 
> I am trying to get the story moving, its been dragging I feel like. If you have any ideas or suggestions leave a comment! 
> 
> As always, thanks so much for reading!

It had taken them hours to get out of the tunnel. They had been attacked by a snake that had once been Levi’s pet. Solomon had been knocked unconscious by said snake. The brothers could only come up with one way that would keep the snake from killing them. That one way was to use Asmodeus’ power to charm it and bend it to his will. 

Well being the narcissistic asshat that he was (sometimes) Asmo refused. With Solomon out of commission, Harlow found herself having to draw on his power to keep him in line and do the one thing, the only thing they could think of, to save their lives. Asmo had been shocked and completely turned on by her show of power. Doing in an instant what others could not get him to do. In the moments following he formed a pact with her. 

Harlow was furious. She had agreed to the pact in the moment only to help Belphegor, don't get her wrong she loved Asmo, but he was really pissing her off right now. When the pact was done and they made their way out of the labyrinth, Diavolo, Lucifer, Satan, Barbatos and the angels were waiting for them. She took them all in as they watched the battle weary group emerge from the tunnel. Solomon was being carried by Beel. Mammon and Levi said nothing wanting to push what had happened to them deep deep down. Asmo was grinning because he never thought he could feel that amount of control. Harlow though she was seething. Her dress was torn, her hair out of place, shoes nowhere to be seen. She had a cut on her forehead and a small amount of blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. She took the companions in that had not been in the tunnels with them and if looks could kill they would all be dead.

“Diavolo, you have a pest problem you need to get looked at. And until you do, after this trip I will not set foot in this caste. Simeon, Luke, I am assuming you have healing powers?” Not waiting for an answer she continued “I think Solomon needs some assistance, we took a rather large blow from the Snake thing living down there.” She told them what had happened exactly and how she anticipated that he had a concussion. Finally she rounded on Lucifer. Pointing at him she spoke, “you had better get these dipshits in line. I am tired of almost dying around every corner. Also I made a pact with Asmodeus. Take that for what you will but for some reason he gets some pleasure out of it. I do not want to see him in my room tonight. Make arrangements for him elsewhere.” She was forward, demanding and he could tell there was no room for compromise. She made her way to the hall that led to her room before turning back. “Simeon, I am going to be taking the longest shower of my life. Please, if you can, do not come back to the room for the next hour.” This was out of respect for the angel, honestly at this point with the dirt, grime and hangover she was sporting she really didn't give a shit who saw her naked. When she reached the archway leading her to her room she turned and said “Diavolo, Lucifer.” They both looked up at her having been distracted by the others around her. “We need to talk. Solomon has been saying some crazy shit in his sleep. Saying you both were very much aware of it and chose not to tell me. Clear your schedules for tomorrow morning, we are going to have a long and very very unpleasant conversation about all of this then.”

She left abruptly and the prince and the demon lord stared after her in shock. They both glanced at each other. “What does she mean by Solomon was saying crazy things?” Diavolo asked the four brothers that were in the labyrinth with them. All four of them looked worse for wear and completely exhausted, each slowly shifting out of their demon forms. Mammon was the first to speak, “Well he kept saying something about her power being locked away. And something about an angel being the one to do that to her.” He glanced over at Simeon and Luke, both were taken aback by the statement. Diavolo’s face dropped and Lucifer's frown deepened. Barbatos cut in then, “Simeon, Luke, why don't you follow me to the drawing room. There is a couch in there and better lighting that will allow you to get a better look at his injuries.” He thought as quickly as he could to distract them from the comment and ushered them away. 

Once the 4 of them had gone Lucifer looked back at his brothers and asked, “What else did he say?” The brothers shrugged, but Leviathan spoke up. “We don't know exactly but once we got Solomon in the room after he was hit by Henry, Harlow was looking after him. I saw him whisper something in her ear right before he passed out completely. Her eyes got really big and then she started yelling at all of us to get her out of there.” He was wringing his hands nervously and he looked up at the demon prince and his eldest brother. “What do you think it was?”

Then they didn’t know, Solomon had not spilled the whole truth to all of them. He more than likely only told Harlow, and would she believe it? Diavolo and Lucifer were not sure. Lucifer pinched the bridge of his nose and inhaled deeply. This was going to be a very very long night. 

~

Harlow stood in the shower with the water on as hot as she could stand it. She had examined her growing bruises and her newly obtained mark. It sat directly above Beel’s and above it was space for one more. She found it odd how the placing happened but was more concerned with the other marks on her body. She had a gash on her side that was already turning purple around it. Her arm where she had hit the wall was scraped and her knees were in very rough condition. The hot water had stung at first but slowly it faded. She rested her head on the shower wall, willing the sound of the water to drown out her thoughts. But it was no use. Solomon's words repeated in her head over and over and over again. “Your power… locked away… angel did it.” and then “Talk to Lucifer and Diavolo, ask them about the wings and the archangel Michael.” They had asked to look at the marks left by the pacts she had made. They had said that a human with no magic could die from forming so many pacts. But they also said she was fine. 

Her mind was racing when she felt a pull on one of the bonds, she sank to her knees trying to shake it off. It wasn’t uncomfortable, she just wasn't used to this sort of thing. Focusing on the string she sent what she hoped would be a leave me alone warning to whatever brother was messing with her. Then back down the same line came a slightly more forceful zing, crackling into her as if she had just been shocked by static. She slammed up a wall then severing the weird energy that was connecting her to whoever it was. She forcefully turned off the shower and grabbed her DDD. 

“Who sent a shock down our bond?” She typed out a quick message to the brothers she was in a pact with. They all responded immediately saying it wasn't them. Asmo though was feeling particularly helpful at the moment and added, “It could be the bond you have with Solomon, he could be using your temporary link to communicate with you. Harlow, darling, I am sorry about earlier, please forgive me.”

She scoffed and wrapped a towel around herself and left the bathroom only to find both angels staring at her. Each held what looked like a DDD in their palms, but they were different. Luke's hands trembled as he handed her his device and he asked, “Harlow, is… is this you?” She took the phone and looked at a photo of her. She was smiling and happy, it appeared to be from when she had gone to Ireland with some friends after her split. There was text under it that read “Alert! Missing! If you see this woman contact the Archangel in charge of your district immediately. She is of great importance and must be protected at all cost.” 

Harlow couldn't believe what she was reading. Great importance? Protected? “Yes that is me but I am not sure why any of the archangels would be looking for me.” She handed the phone back to Luke. Simeon sighed and sat down on his bed and the little color that was in Luke's face was now gone. “We can't tell Mika we know where she is.” He said pointing the comment at Luke. Luke nodded gravely. “I understand. He will cause another war between the realms and destroy everything Diavolo, Gabriel and Raphael have been working for.”

“Peace comes at a price but at this point it would be a price none of us could or would be able to pay.” Barbatos said from the doorway. Harlow turned to look at him and studied him closely. Then studied the angles. She felt the temperature in the room drop slightly as they all seemed to come to some unspoken agreement. “Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on?”

“There are still some answers we do not have yet, but the prince and Lucifer would be more than willing to explain this to you to the best of their abilities in the morning.” Barbatos said. “In the meantime, Simeon, would you be willing to take a look at Harlow's wounds? More damage was done to her than she thinks.” Turning on his heel he left the doorway. Simeon escorted Luke out of the room, claiming that, even though he was 150 years old, he was far too young to be helping with the healing of a woman. Harlow had changed into shorts and a tank top and put her hair up. He walked around her, studying her. He hovered his hands over her wounds he could see and they began to glow. Each of them quickly disappeared. “Harlow, there is an injury that is under your shirt. Do you mind lifting it up for me? It seems to be bleeding quite a bit but after this you should be fine.” She did as instructed. He did touch her skin this time and she flinched away from him. “Sorry.” he muttered as he continued to look at it, finally he began the healing process, which took much longer than her other injuries did. “There was some internal bleeding with that one, it's a good thing I took a look at it.”

“How is Solomon? Is he alright?” Harlow asked. “And thank you.”

“It's not a problem. And he is doing perfectly fine now.”

With that they called it a night she went to sleep and he sat staring at the ceiling. He had seen the wings etched on her back. He was careful not to touch them though. He knew better than to test Michael, but he also knew when he should and should not call him for aid. This was a “should not” time. Simeon also knew how poorly things had ended with them. He was at Uriel's apartment in the human world when she showed up at the door. He was also kicking himself for not putting the pieces together sooner. But the Harlow form then and the Harlow now, well, they were very different people.


	18. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conversation between Harlow, Lucifer and Diavolo. 
> 
> Not beta read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again readers! 
> 
> This chapter is pretty short but I am trying to make up for last week. Hopefully I can keep up the momentum! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter, leave a comment if you like! 
> 
> As always, I hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe!

Harlow sat in Diavolo’s study; he sat behind his desk as Lucifer paced to the side gloved hand at his chin. They had been sitting in silence after greeting her for about 5min now. It was getting uncomfortable but she wasn't sure what to expect. She was still angry with them for not telling her something about things that directly affected her, but their silence other than saying good morning was suffocating. Clearing her throat Harlow spoke, “Can you tell me what is going on? I’m angry and confused and I don't know if I can trust either of you. Especially now that you have been holding back information about ME from me.” 

Diavolo looked up at her from the spot on his desk he had been staring at. Lucifer stopped pacing and came to stand behind Diavolo crossing his arms and looking her in the eye. Finally, she was being acknowledged. “We can tell you what we know. But we don't have all of the answers yet. The biggest question, the why, is still a mystery to us. Harlow please understand that we were only trying to protect you.” Diavolo spoke. It pained him to hear her say that she didn’t trust them. That was not his intent. He had planned on telling her everything once they had all of the answers. 

“Oh yes, because ‘protecting’ me has gone so well since I have been here. Need I remind you that Levi almost killed me, I was poisoned, Mammon and Beel ran through my bedroom wall, and just last night I was thrown into a wall by a giant snake that wanted to eat me. If you wanted to protect me, protect me from those things, not something that is apparently locking away my magic.” Harlow retorted. Her green eyes flashed daring him or lucifer to challenge her. Neither one of them spoke, both averting their gaze from her once again. Harlow stood from her chair and walked to the desk and brought her fist down. “Look at me! Answer me!” She yelled. This was something that was so out of character for her, but she was in all honesty scared. Why would an angel want to do this to her? What was so important about her? Why was she brought here in the first place?

Tears stung in her eyes but she did her best to hold them in. Apparently these two didn’t think she could handle the truth, and she would not give them the satisfaction of thinking they were right. Neither one of them looked at her, Diavolo fisted his hands together and rested his chin on them, Lucifer made no moves except he was gripping his arms even tighter. “Fine, don't answer me. I am leaving though. I will walk back to the human realm if I have to.” She turned on her heel and headed for the door. 

“Your tattoo, it isn’t a tattoo.” Lucifer's voice said from behind her. She turned around and looked at him. He continued, “Please, Harlow, sit down. I imagine this is going to be difficult for you to hear.” She crossed back to her chair. Sitting down she said “It’s a tattoo, I don’t fully remember getting it but it stung just as bad as my others did and took the same amount of time to heal.” 

“No, its something very similar to the marks that signify your pacts with the demon brothers.” Lucifer said. “You have been ‘blessed’ by an angel, though this particular blessing was to lock away your power.”

“I haven’t met any angels, I didn't even know they were real until a few months ago! And if it's locking something away then it isn't a blessing!” 

“We don't know why this happened to you but we do know that your power would be stronger than Solomon's if you had access to it.” Diavolo said. “We are also not sure how this kind of bond works. It is more than likely similar to the bonds with demons but I have never seen anything like this.”

Harlow listened, these answers were more of half answers but for now she would take them. The demons both stopped talking, hoping that this would be answer enough. They watched Harlow's face as she processed the information. Taking it in, trying to understand. Looking down at her nails she asked timidly, “Do you know who did this to me?” And there it was, the question they had both been dreading. How were they supposed to answer this? 

“Harlow,” Lucifer began, “We have evidence to suggest that your ex husband is actually the Archangel Michael.”

She looked up at him, “What?”

Her head was spinning by the time they were done telling her how they had pieced it all together. “We still aren’t sure why he has done this to you or what it is he wants from you. However, I have reason to believe that it is not safe for you to return to the human world until we have found the answers to those questions.” Diavolo said. 

This was all too much for her to take in. she had to be going crazy. How? How had this even happened to her. But she knew they were telling the truth, her entire life had been turned upside down and nothing was too far-fetched to believe anymore. She also felt so violated, how dare he leave his mark on her without asking. At least with the brothers it had always gone along the lines of “ok, I guess we are forming a pact now.” Michael though, oh no he wouldn’t ask, and he knew she wouldn’t question what he told her. 

Then it dawned on her, if it was something similar to a pact, she could communicate with him and him with her if he wanted to. She turned pleading eyes to the two, “oh… oh no...I think... I think I messed up.” They both looked at her slightly confused. “Now that some of my magic has been unlocked or whatever Solomon did, I think it opened up the communication pathway. I felt a pull on the power twice yesterday. The second time I felt it I thought it was one of the brothers trying to communicate with me to see if I was alright, I was annoyed and I sent a leave me alone message back. Then there was a static shock sent through the bond and I threw up a wall. Or at least I hope I did…” 

“Barbatos! Get Simeon in here at once!” Diavolo called out to the butler. Harlow had not realized but he had been standing in the doorway the entire time. “We need to know if he is on his way here or not.” Harlow looked up at him, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. She wasn't sure when exactly she had started to fear him but the anxiety he caused her just by thinking about him was enough to make her wonder how much he had lied about, how many of her memories were missing like the night she had gotten the mark. 

Lucifer watched the woman's face go from shock to pure terror. He knelt down in front of her and took her hands in one of his and tilted her face up to look at him. “He isn't going to get you Harlow, we won't let that happen. We will find a way to unlock your power and then you can fight him yourself.” His eyes showed kindness, something that she had not seen there before, but there was something else there when he told her she would fight him herself, but she couldn't put her finger on it. She reached out for him then and hugged him.


	19. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harlow tries to convince them that she can do this on her own. But she is going to end up having to lift weights with Beel (in the coming chapters).
> 
> Michael is my least favorite.
> 
> Not beta read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Readers! 
> 
> I hope you all are having a wonderful day. Sorry my updates are irregular. I apricate you all for sticking with me though! I am getting excited to see how this story is going to go and how it is going to end (a while from now.)
> 
> But in all seriousness, how much do you all think Beel can bench??? 
> 
> I also never thought I could write a villain that I hate, but here I am despising everything that Michael is. 
> 
> I hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe!

Simeon stood in the office on the phone with Gabriel. Confirming that the missing persons report had been sent out by Michael and him alone. Gabriel and Raphael had been doing their best to get a hold of their brother after receiving a report from Uriel. “Yes, yes, everything else is going fine here. Luke is doing well and is learning many different things about human and demon culture…. Yes, I understand…. Good bye.” Semion hung up the phone. Harlow sat in the chair still staring at her hands. She was trying to understand but was having the worst time doing so. To her, her entire relationship seemed to be more of a lie than it already was. It made one thing even clearer to her, she had terrible judgement and taste in men. 

Diavolo, Lucifer and Barbatos discussed things in the corner. Solomon sat in the chair next to Harlow holding her hand. She needed some human affection right now. While unbeknownst to all of them the other brothers and Luke listened to the conversations from the other side of the door. “Well the good news is, Michael has no clue where she is. The bad news is he is looking and if the bond is open, we don't have much time before he finds her. The other bad news is Michael is in charge of the Celestial realm’s aerial division and they will follow him without question and without permission from the other archangels.” Simeon said to the room not directing the comment to anyone in particular. Diavolo turned to him and snarled. It was rare to see the prince this way, but when it came down to it he was willing to protect Devildom and its residents and all costs. Lucifer was behind him growling softly, he was willing to protect his family at all costs, and that is exactly what Harlow had become. 

Harlow’s mind was racing. She couldn't ask them to help her, she couldn't ask them to put their lives and the entire Devildom on the line for her. She was just a normal human woman. Normal, but somehow got mixed up in some weird game being played by angels and demons. No, she would go home, she would call Michael, and it would be between just the two of them. 

Harlow stood then and faced all of them. “I can’t ask you to protect me. This is something that I got myself into, willingly or not, and this is something I am going to have to get myself out of. Diavolo, I need to go home. That way he wont come here, your lives won't be at risk then. The exchange program can still continue and whatever happens will end with me.” She knew that there was a chance that talking with Michael could end with blows but if her magic was free, maybe she would stand a chance. Solomon had mentioned that making a pact with all of the brothers could free her magic from the bond with Michael but she had yet to tell Lucifer that she had met Belphegor. She had yet to make a pact with Satan or Lucifer as well, and she wasn't sure that she could ask that of them when it would just be putting them in danger. No, they would have to find another way.

“You aren’t going anywhere, Harlow. For the remainder of this year you are a resident of Devildom and it is my job to protect all those who live here.” Diavolo said, shifting into his demon form and letting it be known there would be no changing his mind. If he intended on it scaring her, well it didn't work. She took a few steps towards him. “If you aren’t going to let me leave, then at least let me help. You owe me that much for keeping this from me for so long.”

Diavolo ground his teeth and turned to look at Lucifer, who only gave him a slight nod. Turning back to Harlow he said, “Fine, but the second your magic is free you start training. In the meantime you will build your physical strength. You will start your training with the brothers this afternoon. Each are masters in their own right with weapons or in hand to hand combat. Combining those with magic, you will stand a better chance against Michael and his army.” 

Her eyes darted to Lucifer's, he smiled slightly at her hoping to show her some reassurance, then he turned to Solomon and said, “You mentioned that forming a pact with all 7 of us should be enough to break the seal on her magic, is that correct?”

“Yes, but I would advise against making another one too soon. She has adjusted well to her others but each was spaced far enough apart that it gave her body time to get used to the additional power. Also, Lucifer, you should be the last to form a pact. You have the greatest amount of power and it could come as a shock to her.”

Thinking back on it she had not felt much with her first pact but the ones following Mammons, each time she felt slightly more fatigued the next day but nothing too bad. If she were being honest with herself she was exhausted today, but the events of yesterday leading into the situation they were in now had added to the burden of the newly formed pact.

Lucifer nodded. “I will talk with Satan and do my best to get a hold of Belphi to see if he would be willing to come back from the human world and form a pact with Harlow.” The lie teased like ash in his mouth. How was he going to convince his youngest brother, who despised humans, and was currently locked in the attic of the manor house to make a pact with her. His freedom for the pact, that would probably do it, but how would he keep the young demon in line after that. 

Harlow thought to the demon brother in the attic, she would visit him when they were home. If she was making pacts with his brothers to free him, surely he would make a pact with her to stop a war with Michael.

“That is all good and well but we still need answers.” Solomon cut in. “We need to know why this is happening. And no offence to you, my dear Harlow, but what is so important about her that Michael is willing to start another war with devildom to get her back.” Harlow took no offence, it was the question she had been asking herself for the last 3 hours now. “I will continue to look into it as the days continue.” Diavolo said. “Though we haven't had any luck so far. I was thinking that we could run a DNA test on a sample of Harlow's blood. If she is willing to agree to that sort of testing.”

The conversation continued on for hours. Harlow agreed to give a blood sample and she agreed to training. “This is going to be actual hell.” She thought to herself when they dismissed her. Sure she had been running with Beel and did yoga regularly but that was the extent of her physical activity. She was never one for lifting weights and she had only taken a basic self defense class her sophomore year of college, not that it had done her any good with Michael. 

~

He knew exactly where she was. Their connection had not lasted long but he knew she was in that damned demon prince’s castle. He and Uriel had flown back to the Celestial realm to see what they could find. When he was unable to find his brothers he took things into his own hands. Before he had tried connecting with her he had sent out a missing persons alert to all of the angels, but in his frustration had not waited for any response. When he had found her and when she threw up the barrier between them, it only added fuel to the fire that was burning inside him.

He paced in his office at the Palace he called a home when living amongst the angels. Harlow was the only known being to possess angle, demon, and human blood. She was a descendant of royalty in all three realms and held the power to control and dominate them. He would dethrone Gabriel and Raphael. Taking full control. He would be damned if he gave that up. With her by his side he could take over the human world and the demon world and rule them as he wished. Sinners would be dealt with swiftly and without mercury and those who were pure would be rewarded. He would also finally get his retribution on Diavolo for taking his brothers from him and using his sister to do so. 

Harlow would make a fabulous puppet queen. Chances are she would live longer if she were in the Celestial realm or in Devildom in comparison to the human world. She would have his children and they would also have the strength of the three races existing in this universe. Together they would lead them into a new era of the universe one ruled by angels. But that would take time. He would go to devildom soon and try to persuade Harlow to come back with him. He would explain everything to her and she would listen. She would have to. If she didn't though, well he would just prepare his forces and would launch an attack on the demon realm and he would lay waste to it. Leaving her no choice but to agree to his terms. 

Uriel could try and stop him but it wouldn’t be of any use. Ultimately Uriel was only there to help him and he could not say no to his commander. He stopped his pacing at the liquor chest and poured a glass of scotch (a taste he had acquired in the human world) and cheered to himself and his flawless plan, letting his lightning flicker around him in triumphant glory.


	20. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Training happens.
> 
> Harlow opens the dress bag, but not the note in the dress bag
> 
> The ball starts off wonderfully. 
> 
> Not beta read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Readers!
> 
> I hope you all are well. There isn't much detail in this chapter but I think it has some importance to the story. 
> 
> I hope you all are staying warm. We are getting snow where I live for the next 3 days, so I am going to curl up by the fire with my dogs and hopefully get lots of writing done for you all!
> 
> As always I hope you are staying happy, healthy, and safe!

Harlow just sat there and watched. Beel was demonstrating how to properly bench press…. With 30000lbs of weight. Earlier he had demonstrated how to squat with 150000lbs. Mind you he was doing this all in his demon form but, regardless Harlow was feeling hopeless. When he was done with his rep he put the bar back on he handles and sat up and said “Alright, so I know that I lift a lot but I am thinking we could start you off at 200lbs or 300lbs, what do you think?” Harlow just stared at him blinking rapidly. “Yeah, I am going to need someone else to teach me this.” She wasn’t weak, she knew that. Yoga had helped her build muscles using her own body weight, but this? This was extreme. “I’m the best one to teach you. I also have the best after work out meals planned.” 

“I am sure you do, Beel. In Fact, I have no doubt in your snack or meal choice. But I can’t bench press 200lbs! I don't think I can bench press much more than the bar.” She told him. He looked her over and thought for a moment. “Well you are rather small and I slow down for our runs. But we may need to talk to Diavolo because our bars start at 150lbs here in Devildom. How much do they typically weigh in the Human world?” 

Harlow deadpanned. She was as fragile as glass here. If it weren't for the boys she would have been dead by now. Though she also had to admit to herself, that if it weren't for the exchange program her life would probably be relatively the same. She didn’t let her mind wander to Michael, she didn’t have the mental capacity to handle those thoughts at the moment. “No Beel, in the human world they are about 45lbs each.”

His mouth dropped open. “No wonder you are so small. You just need to train harder. And I will start a list of high protein meals for you so you can bulk up.” She groaned. “Beel, honey no. I don't want to bulk. Just point me to a sword or something and we will start working on whatever weight will help me lift that and whatever armor I am going to wear.” Beel nodded, “We are going to have to talk to Mammon. He is our weapons specialist for the demon lord's army.” Harlow wondered how he managed to get that title. From what she understood that was an extremely coveted position in any army. But feeling the need to burn some energy she asked him if they could do a bodyweight exercise and a run. 

They made there way to Mammon who paired her with dual fighting swords and a staff that was collapsible. “You are going to learn how to use all of the weapons but these will more than likely suit you best.” 

She then went to Satan who helped her with strategies. Leviathan who began her training with the staff. He stated he was more used to a spear or a trident but could help as much as he could. Then she went to Asmo, who under the careful supervision of Solomon, began to teach her different kinds of hand to hand combat. Then she made her way to Lucifer who was to helper work on her swordsmanship.

Lucifer had her do her 50th repeat of the same foot work and the same arm movement. “Faster.” He barked at her. She moved again. With his own sword he blocked and sent her sword flying out of her hand. She put her hands up in surrender. Her hands were shaking from all of the activity of the day and she was bone tired. “We are done for the day.” he turned away form her. She could have sworn she saw fear and disappointment flicker in his eyes and honestly, she couldn’t blame him. She wasn't very good at any of the things she had been taught that day. Now she knew it was only day one and that getting good at something took time but time was not on her side. 

She let out a frustrated sigh and left. She made it back to her room in the demon lord's castle and slumped right into bed. It was late on their second day at the castle and while she had been expecting a long weekend full of fun, she had been given 2 days of little sleep, traumatic news, and a body that was sore in places she was sure she had no idea could be sore. She had been relocated to a room that was closer to where Diavolo and Lucifer were staying. She was happy with that choice on their end. She was till upset with Asmo, and though she was sure at some point she would have to speak to Simeon and Luke about everything she wanted to avoid them. 

Harlow loved them, don't get her wrong but she needed time to process all of this and the best way for her to do that was for her to be alone and in silence. Harlow had intended on doing that when she made it back to her room but as soon as she hit the pillow she was asleep. She dreamed of her childhood home in the mountains, she dreamed of learning to fish with her father and sow with her mother. 

She had wanted to leave the small town mountain life so badly when she turned 18 but now its all she wanted. In her dream she felt like she could reach for it and it would be hers for the taking, and just as she was about to do so, it was all torn away from her. She was falling through darkness until she hit the ground hard, landing on her back. She scrambled to her feet and she tried to make sense of the dark shifting and looming shapes around her. When one of the shapes would reach out for her she would shrink back trying to get out of reach, only to be groped by another. “Stop!” she screamed. “Harlow, scared of a nightmare?” A very familiar voice said as one of the figures became clearer. Belphegor stepped out of the shadows. He came close to her and stood just a little too close for her liking. “You have 4 pacts now, just 2 more to go. You had better hurry. You are going to need me.” He stepped even closer and brought his hand up and wrapped it around her neck, laughing the entire time. 

Harlow jolted awake gasping. There was a knock at her door right before it opened. “Lucifer has instructed for you to take your meal in here tonight.” Barbatos said as he walked in carrying a tray of food. He took in her pale features and her brow that was glistening in sweat. He set the try on the table, but couldn’t bring himself to leave without offering her some words of comfort or encouragement. “Ms. Harlow, I can not imagine what you are going through currently and I honestly can not say more than what I am about to offer you now. You are on the right path, things are going to be alright if you stay with the right people.” She looked at him wanting so badly to ask him how he could be so sure, but opted for “Thank you, Barb.” She attempted a warm smile, but knew that it faltered. He however made up for it with his smile, “You are welcome. Please get some rest, have more training in the morning and then there is the ball tomorrow night.” Then he left. 

She had forgotten about the ball they were supposed to have. Harlow was in no mood to interact with more demons but she knew it was expected of her. Lucifer had mentioned on the ride over that the ball was to include more noble and high ranking demons and their families. Some of them apparently went to school with them. She still wasn't sure what Asmo had gotten her to wear and she had promised to not look. At this point though she didn't care, she needed to know, the temporary high and distraction for a new piece of clothing had gotten her through many difficult situations. She made her way to the wardrobe and pulled out the garment bag. Laying on the bed she slowly unzipped it, revealing a cobalt blue 1930’s inspired velvet gown. 

Her jaw dropped at the sight of it. Satan had to have told Asmo who must have loved the idea and went out to get it right away. There was a note attached to the hanger she reached for it to open it but thought better of it and would wait until the next night to read it. Harlow was so excited she started to plan out her hair and make up. Her exhaustion melting away, for some reason having the right opportunity to be feminine always gave her new found energy. It was also a welcome distraction from the lingering fear she had from the dream. 

~

The next morning she found herself in the training room with Asmo first thing. More hand to hand combat. Closely monitored, again, by Solomon. Then to Levi, Mammon joined to give pointers. Beel had said that it was going to be a break day for her from his training while he waited for human world weights to make it to the house of lamentation. She saw the angels briefly at lunch and gave them a wave. They only smiled sadly at her and kept walking. 

Lucifer didn’t go easy on her, her training was arguably harder than the day before. The same move over and over and over again. Only stopping when the force of him pushing back on her blade sent her sprawling to the floor. “Harlow, you need to get up. You need to be faster, I know Beel is working with you on strength but…”

She cut him off “Fucking hell Lucifer! This is my second day. I know what i have to do! But it is all going to take time! I am sorry I haven't been doing this for the last 4000 years!” Her voice increased in volume with each word.

“This isn’t about that,” He said back to her.

“Then what is it about? Are you trying to point out how weak I am?! I know. I will never be as strong as you all or as good as you all are at this.” She was practically yelling at him now. She had stood up and had gotten in his face. “Do you not understand that you could die?” He roared back at Harlow. “Why do you care?!” She screamed. She was acting like a teenager and she hated it but all of this it was too much and for some reason fighting with him made her feel normal. Fights with him were fair and safe (for her anyway, perhaps not his brothers). But what she had just said, she knew she crossed a line. 

He held her in place by the arms, “Why do I care?! I don't know Harlow, you tell me. You have become the best part of this program and have become part of my family. But you are right, maybe I should let you throw your life away and put yourself at risk because it seems an awful lot like you don't care if you live or die.”

She pulled out of his grasp. “That isn’t fair Lucifer and you know it. All of this is new to me. Sorry I’m not catching on as quickly as you would like me to. I’ll see you tonight at the ball.” With that she left the room. She didn’t hear Lucifer say to the empty room, “I care because I can't lose someone like you again.”

~

She slipped into the dress before doing her hair and makeup. She put her hair up into a low bun with braids wrapping around it. She stuck the pin Lucifer had given her into it to dress it up some. It was the first time she was wearing it and she was hoping that it would be a peace offering for the fight they had had earlier. She left a few strands of curled hair out to frame her face. She wasn’t sure where they had come from but on the vanity in the room she found a set of art deco chandelier earrings and bracelet, but she put them on. She did her makeup slightly more dramatic than usual, opting to contour and add fake eyelashes. Instead of her normal red lip however she opted for a dusty pink rose color. Slipping on the heels, that like the jewelry, had appeared out of nowhere she walked over to the full length mirror on the other side of the room and took herself in. Her arms and her back were fully exposed. Her wings and pact marks fully on display. 

The wings acted as a reminder now, to not trust the first handsome face to look your way. But the pact marks acted as her safety net and her sign of protection. She took a deep breath and walked to her door and opened it. Solomon was standing there waiting for her, he took her in and beamed at her. “You look absolutely stunning.” He offered her his arm and she took it making their way to the ballroom. 

They were the last to arrive and the last to be announced. Diavolo had wanted them to be announced together, saying something about the exchange program and what not. So they obliged. When the doors opened and the staff member announced their arrival the room turned to look at them. The demon and angel males Harlow had befriended, eyes all locked on her. Beel stopped eating, mouth hanging open. Mammon gaped with his eyes wide. Satan smirked to himself, he had been right about how she would look in the dress. Asmo swooned. Levi turned a bright shade of red, cursing Solomon under his breath for being the one to walk in with her. Lucifer though, his eyes traveled to the hair pin sticking out of her bun. A smile began to spread across his face. That is until Diavolo came up to stand beside him and said “Well if every demon looked like that…”

Lucifer scowled and began to walk towards her saying to no one in particular “I'm going to ask her to dance.” 

She had barely gotten to the dance floor when she saw him walking up to her. “Hey, um I’m sor…” She started when he reached her. “Will you dance with me?” He asked her, cutting off her apology and offering her his hand. She took his hand and said, “Yes, but I am not very good at this sort of dancing.” He smirked at her “Just follow my lead and you’ll be alright”. She grinned at him and let him lead her to the dance floor. “The hair pen looks good with this dress.” He said as he led her through the steps, his gloved hand resting on the small of her back. “This is the perfect occasion to wear it. Thank you again.” He looked down into her eyes, they were full of apology, but they also showed that she felt safe there, with him. 

Lucifer didn't notice that the jewel in the middle had started to glow. The dance was just about to end when the doors to the ballroom burst open. The lights flickered and wind swept through the room. Pulling Harlow close to him, Lucifer did his best to shield her from the force of the wind. When it died down everyone looked to the entryway, there stood a white winged male. He was dressed in a pure white suit aside from the golden feather that was pinned to the lapel of his suit jacket. His blond hair was shoulder length and his blue eyes glowed bright. Harlow’s eyes went wide and she clung to Lucifer even tighter. When the male’s eyes locked on hers he smiled, “Why hello Harlow, I have been looking for you.” He shifted his gaze to Lucifer’s and growled “Let go of my wife.” 

Michael was in Devildom.


	21. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a shorter chapter, only about 1600 words long... but it is a difficult chapter. 
> 
> Michael is a huge dick and tries to take Harlow. 
> 
> Not beta read. 
> 
> *There are nods to physical abuse and there is degrading language towards women. Please read cautiously.*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Readers,
> 
> This chapter is not a happy one. I am sorry. There are some power movements for sure but there is also a lot of just Michael being the worst angel ever. I am hoping to bring some humor in to the next chapter because this one is so heavy but it is what it is. 
> 
> I hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe.

Harlow’s heart was pounding. Time seemed to slow down and there was a ringing in her ears. She couldn’t tell what anyone was saying to her. There was no doubt that the angel standing before her was her ex, and his angel form was breathtaking. There was a savageness behind his words, the only words she heard, echoed in her ears. “Let go of my wife.” sounded over and over in her head. 

Strong hands grasped her shoulders and then moved to her face, forcing her to look away from the angel. Her eyes locked on a set of red ones and she noticed his mouth was moving but she couldn’t hear what he was saying. So she focused on his lips reading his words instead. “Breathe, Harlow, you need to breathe.” He watched a single tear escape her lashes as she took a deep shaking breath. Good, at least she was responding. 

Now that she was responding Lucifer handed her off to Mammon. He quickly took her and wrapped his arms around her, the other brothers made to surround them, blocking her from Michael’s view. Diavolo made his way to the entryway, demon form in place. Lucifer made to flank him. Barbatos began to usher other guests out of the room onto the balcony. Solomon stood halfway between where Harlow was and where the prince and Lucifer were. Simeon and Luke made to exit with the other guests, not wanting to damage relationships further. After all, neither of them were archangels, both from noble families yes but they did not possess the same power the archangels did. 

It wasn't until all of the guests except for the brothers, Harlow, and Solomon remained that anyone spoke. “Michael, what an unexpected surprise. As you can see we were having a small get together and I would hate to have my guests leave so soon. Let's talk in my study.” Diavolo said, trying to keep his anger in line, trying to get the angel away from his prey without causing more of a commotion. 

Michael was the same height as Diavolo but somehow he managed to look down his nose at the demon prince. “Talking won't be necessary. All I require is my wife, and I will be on my way.” Lucifer spoke then, “Last I heard, she wasn’t your wife anymore.” Michael turned his attention to his former brother and spat “You know as well as I do a piece of paper means nothing. I am bound to her.” He turned his attention to the group of demons huddled around a small form changing his tone, “Harlow, please, I only want to talk to you. I have missed you and I care about you. It is dangerous for you to be here. Please, come back to the human world with me, my love.” He was only met with cold stares from the other brothers, but he saw the blue skirt shift as if to move farther away from him. He tried again, “You look beautiful tonight, your dress is almost as pretty as your wedding dress. Let me look at you, then we can talk and go home.” Still nothing, he made to step closer but his way was blocked by Diavolo and Lucifer. 

Diavolo spoke then “Michael, it is clear she doesn’t want to talk to you. You also have no authority here. She is under my protection and she will not be going anywhere with you. If you wish to discuss things further you may set up a meeting. Until then though, I am going to ask you to leave.” He was finding it more and more difficult to not lash out. Michaels attention was back on him. “You have no claim to her. Give her to me. Now. She is mine.” Michael knew he couldn't possibly take her by force, not that night anyway but he was hoping it would have gone smoother than this. He had convinced himself that if she saw him, she would come running back, especially when she saw his true form. 

Harlow went from shaking in fear, to shaking in anger as she listened to him talk. How dare he, she was not a possession, and he sure as hell couldn’t walk back into her life like this. She loosened her grip on mammon lifting her face from his chest. She wasn't exactly sure what she was doing but she pulled herself free of him. He looked down at her questioningly. “It’s ok.” She mouthed. Detaching herself from the circle of brothers she did her best to gather all of her courage and she made her way towards the prince, lord and angel. When she passed Solomon he reached out to her and briefly grasped his hand. She felt a small pulse of power go through her. He had shared some of his magic with him again, but not to the same extent. It was all he could offer her in the moment. 

Her heels clicked against the marble floor, the 3 figures in the front of the room all looked at her. Diavolo and Lucifer’s expressions were blank, but Michaels was one of triumph. He knew she would come to him. When she was only a few paces away from them the demons walked up to meet her. “What are you doing?” Diavolo said to her quietly. “Trust me.” was all she said. Placing a hand on her back as if to be ready to snatch her back if Michael tried anything, Lucifer said “we are right behind you.”

She was standing right in front of him now. He towered over her, and his large frame had always intimidated her. She looked him in the eye. He smiled down at her, on the surface it looked friendly enough, but there was something darker behind it. She knew it all too well. “Darling, I knew you would see it my way. Let’s go home. We have so much we need to discuss. I love you Harlow and always will.” Michael said to her, grasping her wrist with the bracelet. She pulled out of his grip and slapped him hard across the face. “I am not going anywhere with you. I am not yours and never will be again. The moment the divorce was final we were done. Michael, I never want to see or hear from you again.” Diavolo and Lucifer grinned at the stunned look Michael had from the impact. 

It didn't last long though, his eyes flashed dangerously, it was the same look he had given her the night she caught him cheating. “We need to talk alone Harlow. I won't have this discussion in front of…” he looked around the room and sneered, “in front of theses… monsters.” There was a moment when Lucifer and Diavolo took their eyes off of Michael to give each other a shocked look. It was enough though. Michael grabbed Harlow by the upper arm and pulled her to him. “Ah, no Michael let me go!” Harlow yelled, pulling the attention of the room back to her. She scratched at his arms trying to pry his hands off of her, but his grip was painfully strong. 

The demons and Solomon all moved until Michael held up a fist full of blue lightning and held it right over Harlow's heart. “Move and she dies.” He knew none of them would be willing to let that happen. They all froze in place. He put the lightning away, “That's what I thought. Now, Harlow, be a good girl and let's go home.” He began to drag her away. 

“NO!” Harlow screamed as he wrapped an arm around her waist and the other around her chest. He held her so tightly, she knew she would be bruised later. She fought against him. “Get the fuck off of me, let go!” He brought his hand up to cover her mouth but she bit down on his thumb as he tried to do so. She brought her heel down on his foot. “You ungrateful bitch, Stop fighting me!” he roared, wrapping his hand tightly around her throat. Gasping for air her instincts took over and she sent a burst of raw magic pulsing through him which made him stumble back, letting her go. The brothers were at her side in an instant and Diavolo lunged for Michael as soon as Harlow was away from him. 

Black shadows curled around Diavolo and Lightning zinged around Michael. Diavolo sent Michael sprawling through the open door. “Get out of my castle and don't come back. Leave before I declare war on the Celestial realm for an unwarranted attack against my people.” 

“This isn’t over.” Michael hissed and in an instant he was gone. 

If Beel hadn't been holding on to her she would have fallen to the floor. Everyone noticed the purple and blue splotches appearing on her skin but said nothing. “Diavolo?” She asked quietly. He looked down at her, his eyes softening when he saw how disheveled her hair was, her lipstick smeared from biting Michael. “What is it Low, what can I do?” Diavolo asked her softly. “I know the party has just started but, I think I need to go lay down for a little while.”

Diavolo nodded and sent Beel, Satan and mammon up to her room with her. She couldn’t be alone, not with Michaels appearance and him attempting to take her. The party resumed, though the entire mood and energy surrounding the guests had changed. Some were more somber, while others were more feral, itching to fight with anyone willing to challenge the strength of the demon kingdom. He noticed however, that the two angel exchange students also retreated to their rooms, making him wonder how damaged their relationships may have become.


	22. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harlow is really struggling and has shut down. 
> 
> Please don't worry though our girl will come back.
> 
> Not beta read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers,
> 
> Hope you all are having a good Sunday night.
> 
> Thanks for sticking with me through this. I was hoping for some humor but this chapter isn't it. Aftermath is its own thing. 
> 
> I hope you all are happy, healthy and safe.

In her room Beel sat by the door, Satan perched next to the window and mammon sat at the foot of her bed. Harlow sat in front of the fire, she could not get warm. Satan tried to get her to change but she wouldn't budge. It was almost like she had stopped hearing them all together as soon as she left the ball room. Harlow completely shut down. Inside her mind though she was screaming. She wanted nothing more than to go far far away, but she knew she wouldn't be able to escape him even if she tried. The bond that he forced on her would always be a link between them and until she figured out how to break it, he would find her. Always. 

Harlow felt someone drape something over her shoulders. She flinched though when she felt a hand on her back. “It's just me, Harlow.” Satan said to her, as he moved his hand from her back to her chin to try and get her to look at him, she pulled out of his grip turning her face to the side so he couldn't see her. “Harlow, please, please look at me.” Satan tried again. She didn't respond. Beel and Mammon sat and watched the interaction in silence. “Fine.” he stood abruptly then and walked back to his place at the window. He noticed that his sudden movement made her shrink into herself even more and he hated it. He hated Michael for doing this to her and if he had his way he would rip out his feathers one by one before killing him. 

They all sat in silence for what seemed like hours until finally she fell asleep in front of the fire. They moved over to her, this was the only way anyone could get close to her it seemed. Mammon removed the pin from her hair and gently let it down removing all bobby pins and hair ties. He ran his fingers through it to remove any knots. Beel removed her shoes and jewelry. Satan hung back though, noticing the darkening bruises on her arms and throat. His anger was palpable and the last thing he wanted to do was accidentally hurt her. Beel scooped her into his arms and moved her to the bed. When he laid her down she only shifted slightly. The action reminded Mammon of the night he had visited her, he thought she was hurting then but now, it was like she was a completely different person. 

“What do we do now?” Beel asked. They all watched her sleep, neither Mammon nor Satan answered. There was no way to take away her trauma.

~

Luke lingered outside of Harlow’s door. He wanted to check on her. See if she was alright. She was one of the kindest humans he had met and she always helped him when he needed it. She was also one of the few who did not refer to him as the “chihuahua”. He was trying to process what he had seen. Michael had never acted that way in front of him before. Though he had heard that from time to time he would get into misunderstandings with Gabriel and Raphael, his co-rulers. What he had just seen though was… was more than he knew how to understand. “If she is alright then, I will be alright.” He was extraordinarily young for an angel but he had shown great promise with his ability so Michael had taken a liking to him. He had been sad when Michael left for a special assignment in the human world but had also liked the idea of studying under another angel. He knew it would only grow his skill set. 

Harlow's door creaked open. Mammon walked out. His eyes were bloodshot and he looked more tired than any immortal has the right to be. When he saw Luke he sighed. Mammon noticed the worry on his face and saw the way he was wringing his hands. It was clear the angel was worried, and the events of the night have nothing to do with him or the angels as a whole but he had a hard time seeing him. “Listen kid, she is going to be ok. Though it is going to be a while.”

“Has she said anything?” Luke asked. “Nah, she sat shivering by the fire for 2 hours before falling asleep. It’s like she can't hear anything anyone is saying to her.” Mammon answered sorrowfully. “Come on, I’ll get you back to your room. It’s late and you can talk to her in the morning.” Mammon placed what he hoped what a somewhat comforting hand on the young angels back. 

~

“That's right, he was in devildom tonight…. Yes the human is still alive…. Yes she is still here…. I am afraid that if Michael comes back Diavolo may declare war…. I know we don't have the resources for that, but you know his units are blindly loyal to him.” Simeon was on the phone with Gabriel. He was his direct report and worked closely with him. Gabriel had been excited about the idea of building a bond with the three worlds. “Gabriel, I have to ask, what is the significance of this human? I don't understand.”

The angel on the other line was not sure how much he could say but given the state that his brother left the woman in he knew he had to tell Simeon. He knew that they had to be prepared for whatever was going to come next. “Simeon, Harlow is the only known living descendant of Lilith. She carries the power of all 3 races and has the ability to use that power to concur or rule fairly, or do nothing at all with it. There is more to it but I would rather have that conversation face to face.” Gabriel said. He was tired of dealing with his older brother's bouts of temper and poor judgements. That is the reason Uriel had been brought in in the first place. To keep things like tonight from happening. Michael though was too clever and gave him the slip more often than not. It had been genius that Uriel created the relationship with Harlow though, he wouldn't need direct conversation with him if he had contact with the… well the victim of his attachment. 

“She’s what?” Simeon said quietly. He knew that the archangels had been looking for her for thousands of years, she was said to be the person to bring indisputable peace between the races, or bring the downfall of one or more of them. It all depended on her interactions and life experiences. 

~

“Send these troops to the portal between the realms. Leviathan, dispatch these following ships. I can't risk an attack in these two areas. Asmo, send your best soldiers to train them. It has been a while since we have had the need for combat ready troops.” Diavolo was speaking with Lucifer, Levi, and Asmo pointing at a map of Devildom. The others were just as important but for what he needed now, these three had the power to dispatch and train the demons needed for their success. He had not declared war with the Celestial realm but he was not going to leave the strategic parts of his border undefended. For now the brothers could stay with Harlow, she would probably need them too, but if he needed, he would move her to the castle while the brothers are away. “Lucifer. Try to get in touch with Belphegor. We are going to need his network of spies to let us know the movement of Michael and his troops.” 

“I will do my best my lord.” Lucifer said. Trying to hold in his grimace. He was going to have to find a way to mend the relationship Belphi had with humans, and the now strained trust between them as well. It was going to be by far one of the most difficult conversations he has ever had to have with one of his brothers. It meant swallowing his pride and seeking help. Which for the avatar of pride, was damn near impossible. 

A knock came to the door. “Come in.” Diavolo said, honestly without too much thought. He was shocked to find Simeon walking through the door. Simeon raised his hands, to signify he meant harm or was not a threat. Before anyone could say anything Simeon said “I know why Michael wants Harlow.”

~

Harlow woke the next morning to someone lightly running their fingertips on her forehead. “Harlow, it's time to wake up. I brought you some food. Will you please eat some of it? I brought your favorite, fried eggs and toast.” She recognized the voice as Beels. He was a sweet thing, easily misunderstood by his massive size, he had been a safe space for her. However, instead of moving to sit up she just laid there staring at the ceiling. He noticed that her eyes had opened and continued. “Sweet girl, please sit up. Please eat something.” Nothing. She was still shut down from the night before, and it greatly disturbed him. Meal time had been fun for him with her. She was always looking his way and for a human had a very healthy appetite. He loved that she wasn’t picky and would try anything he gave her, obviously he only gave her things she could eat, and she always loved the flavor. 

Still she didn't respond. “Maybe if you sit up you will feel more hungry.” She felt strong arms move under her to sit her up. Once he was done moving her he sat the plate in her lap. “Take one bite, please.” He caressed her face with his hand, but she only turned away. Beel swallowed hard. “Right, I’ll be right outside your door if you need anything.” He said and left the room. 

The events of the night before kept playing in her head. While she slept she had dreams of all the fights they ever had, the ones she thought had all ended fine but in reality had ended with her hurt, both emotionally and physically. She wasn't sure how he had done it but she was sure he had been erasing her memory for the entire time they were together. She even dreamed about the night that he proposed. As soon as he put the right on her finger and brought her into a hug she felt the most painful burning she had ever felt in her entire life cover her back. She tried to pull away but he held on tighter, vision darkening because of the pain. 

She wasn't sure how long she sat in the room by herself, but she didn't lift her head when Satan entered the room with Barbatos. Barbatos went to the bathroom and turned on the water to her tub. She preferred showers but if she was being honest with herself she had no intention of moving from where she was that day. Satan held her limp hand in his “Harlow, is it alright if we give you a bath?” It wasn't the first time he had asked her a question like this. Consent was something big to him. She knew that even if he was the avatar of wrath, he wouldn't make her do anything she didn't want to. Even so, she did not respond. “I need an answer kitten.” His voice was slightly more harsh than he had meant it to be. If he hadn't been a demon, and if he wasn't watching her close enough he would have missed the almost imperceptible nod she gave him. Moving the untouched plate of food, he scooped her into his arms and carried her to the bathroom. She rested her head against his shoulder but still made no move to do or say anything. 

They got her into the bath, washed her hair and body. They wished her bruises would have washed off like her makeup had. They wished that her only response to her touches had not been out of pain. Barbatos ran a washcloth lightly over her arm and she still winced in pain. Satan seeing the reaction gripped the side of the tub harder. When they were done they dressed her in leggings and a T-shirt. “We are going to go home soon Harlow. I'm going to pack up your things but you will need to walk on your own. Can you do that for me Kitten?” Satan asked her.

“We will talk when we get home”, “Please, let's go home”, “come home to the human world with me.” Her mind flashed to the night before. When someone grabbed her wrist she punched them with her other hand and screamed “I’m not going anywhere with you!” Strong arms pinned her down and held her closely. Arms that were not as painful as the night before. She still struggled against them. She kicked and bit and fought until she heard someone say “We need to sedate her. I brought up taking her home and she completely lost it. Lucifer, Diavolo, help me.”

The same arms that were holding her held her fast. She felt hands work to move her mouth open and another set forced something down her throat. Soon, she was sinking into oblivion before she knew it, and unlike anything else in the last 2 days she welcomed it with open arms.


	23. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's short, it's cheesy. 
> 
> I'm running on 3 hours of sleep but need to escape my own world so here's another chapter.
> 
> No beta, as always.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Readers!
> 
> I hope you like this chapter better than the last few. I hope everyone is doing alright. Just a friendly reminder, drink some water and eat some plants (fruits and veggies).
> 
> Stay happy, healthy and safe! Happy Monday.

The brothers sat in the living room of the house of lamentation, Lucifer sitting with his elbows on his knees holding his face in his hands. His hair was slightly out of sorts and he had the top button of his shirt undone. This was something that was so out of the ordinary, his brothers, the angels, and Solomon were not sure how to react. Simeon knew, of course, the information that Lucifer had been tasked with telling the rest of them. When he had gone to Diavolos office and announced that he knew why Michael was so set on taking Harlow form them, he had dismissed Levi and Asmo from the meeting. Simeon was mostly there to make sure little Luke did not have a bad reaction to the information. Harlow was placed in her room, she was still heavily sedated, and he had to admit the black eye she had given Satan (though healed now) was impressive. 

After running his hands through his hair one more time Lucifer looked up at the room and finally addressed them. “As you all know, Michael is dead set on taking Harlow for some reason. Well, last night we were able to acquire that information. Simeon was able to get ahold of Gabriel and found out that Harlow is… Harlow is the only living direct descendant of Lilith.” He almost choked on his words. He had not had the chance to tell his brothers about the deal that he had made with Diavolo in exchange for Lilith's life. His brothers all looked at him. Mammon spoke first, “What do you mean ‘Lilith's descendant’?” 

“I mean that Harlow is a human descendant of the human reincarnation of our sister Lilith.” Lucifer said. “No, there is no way. I watched Lilith die.” Beel said. “In exchange for Lilith's life I swore absolute loyalty to Diavolo. I was also sworn to secrecy so I couldn’t tell you.” The room sat in stunned silence. He braised himself for the outrage and the questions, preemptively shifting into demon form. Nothing happened though, until Levi said “What are we going to tell Harlow? She is already completely shut down as it is. What is this news going to do to her?” 

~

Lucifer made his way to the attic. “Belphegor. I need to speak with you.” 

“What is it Lucifer, I’m napping. Can't It wait?” a groggy voice came from a lump of blankets in the room. 

“No, you are going to want to hear this. It also means that you could be released soon.” the pile of blankets suffered and messy black and white hair stuck up in every direction. Blinking the sleep from his eyes he said, “I'm listening.”

~ 

Harlow awoke to find herself in the bedroom she had been given at the house of lamentation. From what she could tell without moving she was alone in her room. Good. She couldn't stomach seeing anyone after what happened with Michael. 

She only left her bed to go to the restroom, she remained that way for what seemed like an indefinite amount of time. The boys came to see her, alternating every 2 hours after they had discovered that she was awake. Asmo brought stuff to do her nails with and even insisted on washing her hair in the sink after she had refused to get out of bed for anything other than going to the restroom for the 5th day in a row. Satan sat and read out loud to her, sometimes from books from school and other times from books he remembered her saying she liked. Levi found some of her favorite human animes and would sit and watch them while she stared at nothing. Mammon explained all the rules to just about any card game he could think of. Beel would sit in bed with her and if nothing else make sure she had a few sips of water or smoothie. He would beg her to eat, but she couldn't, both because she had no apatite and because swallowing hurt. Lucifer would sit at her desk and file paperwork sometimes telling her a story about what his brothers were like as children, in hopes to get some sort of reaction. 

It wasn't until one night she fell asleep and had a dream with Belphegor in it that she made any sort of change. He sat under a tall oak tree that was surrounded by lilies of the valley. Harlow’s favorite flower. He motioned to her and said “Please, come and sit with me.” She sat next to him and brought her knees up to her chest. “You haven’t been to visit me in a while. Did something happen? You have been back for just over a week now haven't you?” Harlow rested her cheek on her knee looking away from him. “I'm not feeling well.” was all she said. “I know the last time we talked didn’t go well, but I miss our visits. Will you come see me soon.” 

“I don't know.” Harlow said. She felt a hand on her back. Warm, comforting. “Well if you aren't going to come see me in person, at least let me see you in your dreams. Look at me Harlow.” So she did. She sat up and let him see her. His eyes dropped to her neck, “Who...who did that to you?” 

“Would you believe me if I told you my ex husband is the archangel Michael and he came to devildom and tried to kidnap me?” Belphegor frowned, the bruises were still very purple but were turning yellow and green on the edges. He reached out to touch her neck but she was instantly on her feet, backing away from him. “I cant… I can't. Please, don't touch me there.” 

A warm breeze floated through the dream and she stood still, looking out at the clearing. She hadn't realized it but while she was watching the peaceful scene play out before them, Belphegor had made her a flower crown. Placing it lightly on her head, he said. “I used to take my sister to this valley when we were kids. I would make her crowns like this all the time. Especially when she was sad. Please come and see me soon Harlow.” And then the dream was gone but she rested, truly rested for the first night in a long while. 

She woke the next morning to find her room was empty. She got up. She grabbed clean clothes, a light blue dress and a white cardigan to go over it. She made her way to the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror. Her cheeks were sunken in, her hair was dull and her eyes had lost their spark, she had dark circles under her eyes and all of the evidence of that night was still clear. Even still she took a deep breath and stepped into a burning hot shower. She blow dried her hair and applied make up. Doing her best to cover the bruises. She dressed herself and came back into the main room only to find, not 6 but 7 demon lords looking directly at her. One was holding a single stem of lily of the valley. “Welcome back, Harlow.” Lucifer said.


	24. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Filler chapter for the most part... until Michael starts to plot like the SOB he is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers!
> 
> I am so so sorry for the long gap between this chapter and the last one... I took an unintentional break and wrote a fluff piece for a webcomic I read... It is super fluffy and overly sweet, if you want to check it out you can. :)
> 
> This chapter is kinda all over the place, but the end... the end move the story right along. 
> 
> I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday, whatever holiday that may be. I hope to post more chapters soon. 
> 
> In the meantime I hope you all are staying happy, healthy, and safe!

Harlow’s eyes locked with Belphegor’s. Discreetly as he could he placed a finger to his lips to indicate not to say she knew him. She blinked at him in hopes to indicate that she had gotten the message. She scanned the rest of them and said very quietly “Hey, how are my favorite demons?” She was engulfed by them all, except for Belphegor. She was assuming they would be having an individual conversation about things some time later. 

“Darling you put makeup on and did your hair! Self care is so important! I will do your nails tomorrow.” Asmo said as he hugged her from behind. “What do you want to eat? I will make you whatever you want, and I promise I will only eat half of it.” Beel said. “The new devil cart came out and I waited to play it with you. We have to get through level 20 tonight!” Levi called. “I have collected all of your homework and notes from class. We have plenty of studying to do over the next week.” Satan grasped her hand. “You had better be able to beat me in Texas hold 'em kid.” mammon said to her, making sure his sunglasses were on so that she wouldn’t see his tears of happiness. Then Lucifer cleared his throat. “Harlow, I am glad to see you up again. However, we have much to go over and your training must continue. That can wait until tomorrow of course. However, I would like to introduce you to our other brother Belphegor.” The other brothers reluctantly let go of her. 

Belphegor made his way over to her. He stretched out his hand. She reached out to shake it. “It’s nice to meet you Belphegor.” she said as she shook it. “Please, just call me Belphie.” His smile was sweeter than it normally was. But there was still something dark behind it but Harlow couldn't be sure what it was. 

The rest of the day went by in a flash. It had started with a big meal from Hellz kitchen. Followed by a visit from Diavolo and Barbatos. They had mentioned the residents of purgatory hall were wanting to see her as well. “I would love to see them. I actually have some questions for them, if I am being completely honest with you.” Harlow said before taking a sip of her tea. Lucifer sat next to her and watched her carefully. He wasn't sure if her talking with the angels was a good idea or not. He trusted Simeon and Luke, but he wasn't sure if talking with them would trigger another week like last week. “Harlow, are you sure that is a good idea?”

“Yes, I am sure they will be able to give me some insight into all of this, like why Michael is doing all of this. Also I am sure they can help with my training as well. I know that you brothers were angels at one point but it has been thousands of years, their fighting techniques could have changed. Also I want to talk to Solomon about the pacts and how exactly they will negate the ‘blessing’.” Harlow had started to call the wings the blessing because she didn't know what else to call it. It wasn't like she could call it a pact. The pacts she had made willingly… the blessing was oh so graciously (sarcasm) bestowed upon her without her knowing. 

“I will arrange it,” Diavolo said. “Harlow, would you please excuse us? I have some matters I would like to discuss with Lucifer.”

She left the living room and made her way back to her bedroom. She passed Beel and Belphie in the hall. “Harlow! Where are you off to?” Beel asked enthusiastically. He was so thrilled to have Harlow back to somewhat normal again. He had made sure that she had eaten all of her meal, and he didn't even try to take one of her fries. He had also lingered in her room after she had first greeted them. He had brought her into a hug and spun her around. He had not voiced to her that he was actually scared that she would never recover and that she would waste away to nothing. “I am heading back to my room. I need to start on my homework for the last week.” 

“We are going to the kitchen to get some food. Do you want to come with us?”

“Oh no I am still really full from earlier and I also just had some tea with Dia and Barb.”

Beels face fell a little bit. “We aren't going to take no for an answer.” Belphie said as he reached for her hand and pulled her to them. Beel smiled then and threw his arm over Harlow's shoulder, Belphie still holding her hand they walked to the kitchen.   
~  
“ You haven't told her yet why Michael is doing all of this?” Diavolo asked Lucifer. He was shocked by it. He knew he had told the brothers everything. Solomon had confirmed this last week. “What was I supposed to do Diavolo? This is the first day she has been somewhat normal since the incident with Michael.”

“You saw how she was when she found out we were keeping things form her the last time. I don't see this going well.”

“I am going to tell her. But seriously Dia, she sat in her bed for a week and didn't say a single word. Beel made sure she drank water but getting her to even do that was a challenge. I am trying to think of the best way so that we don't lose her again.” 

“I understand that Lucifer, but if she is going to fight him she has to know his motivations. It will allow her to prepare. I am still waiting to hear from the other archangels on their intended response to Michael's appearance. I have formally requested that he be stripped of his commanding duties and put on a 300 year probation.”

“I will tell her tomorrow. Let's let her have one normal day in Devildom before we bring the world crashing down again.”

“One more day. If you don't tell her then, I will.” Diavolo reluctantly agreed. “I noticed that Belphegor is back. Have you had the chance to discuss using his spies yet?”

~

Michael lounged on his couch as his brothers sat and discussed what to do about the incident that happened last week. He was not at all surprised that Diavolo had logged a formal complaint. He was still surprised by the force behind Harlow's magic. He was glad that for the moment it was capped. “Uriel, where were you when this happened?!” Raphael asked.

“I was making my rounds with my legions in the army. It has been a few years and I wanted to make sure things were still moving as they should.” A few years for angels and demons a few years away was almost like taking a 2 week vacation in the human world. Long enough to make someone feel like they were not quite sure what was going on but short enough that one could feel they could easily catch up. “Though Raphael, you know damn well that Michael dose what he wants when he wants. Why is it that you are only taking notice now of his treatment of Harlow?”

“When the actions of one of our brothers could start a war with the Demons is when I take notice. When the human that holds the key to peace between all three realms is in the Devildom is when I take notice.”

“So you are condoning his actions?” Uriel asked in disbelief.

Gabriel spoke then, “No. There will be repercussions for this. However, Michael was tasked with keeping an eye on the human with this power and making sure they took the angels' side of things in the end. Until this woman was taken by chance as an exchange student, he did a relatively good job of keeping track of her.”

Uriel sighed. This conversation isn't going to go anywhere. At least not tonight. Raphael and Gabriel were detached, they had never met Harlow or spent much time in the human realm. They had a limited understanding of how fragile humans were. 

“Is no one going to ask me what I think about this whole situation.” Michael had grown bored of listening to his brothers talk. They had no idea what his plans were but until he was in full control he was not able to sit out on meetings between them. He still didn't understand why Harlow had acted the way she had. Normally she would have submitted, gone with him and listened. That was one thing he loved about her, she just gave into his power. Unlike his brothers who were, regrettably as strong as he was, but in his opinion not as smart. Getting what he wanted from them took convincing he could not physically force them to follow his wims. 

Uriel rounded on him his golden eyes blazing with fire. “I don't care what you think about this ‘whole situation’. You are the reason for this situation. And on more than one occasion you have been the reason we have almost lost our only hope for unity. I am done. The rest of you can figure this out.” Uriel stormed out of the room. His other brother's eyes lingered on the door as it slammed shut. 

Michael reached for the decanter on the coffee table. It was filled with the best liquor in the celestial realm. The sound of him pouring himself a glass drew their attention back. He swirled the liquid before taking a sip. The bite of the liquid made him sigh slightly after he swallowed. 

“I think those damned devils have been brainwashing my poor Harlow. Think about it. We were happily married and then out of the blue she divorced me, I believe this was a preemptive plan put into place by them, they would never be able to get her to devildom with me constantly around. Then they wait a couple of years to make it seem like everything is normal. I have to admit everything seemed fine, she and I had even been talking more. But then out of the blue she is gone. Spirited away by them without warning.”

He had to make them believe that Lucifer and his ilk were the cause of the problems. If he thought about it, he could rationalize it to himself. “That would explain something, yes, but how does that explain the incident of the other night?” Gabriel asked. 

“They have convinced her that I, that we, are the villains. They know that, despite being an angel, I love this woman and their goal must be to take down the strongest among us. They took charges from both of you, correct?” The others nodded. Simeon had been studying under Gabriel for years and was one of his favorite students. Luke, though originally Michael's student, then Gabriel's, had just been transferred to Raphael, as his sister's son, he had wanted to personally see to his training. “I only wish for my wife back. There is no telling what they may be capable of if our cherished ones are in devildom if a war breaks loose.” Michael played his hand and was succeeding. 

“What do you think we should do?” Gabriel asked. 

“Make demand of our own.” Michael said coolly, taking another sip of his drink. “Demand the return of Simeon and Luke. Then demand the release on their hold of Harlow. If they do not comply, set a meeting to discuss terms and potential terms of war.”


	25. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A LOT happens in this chapter. 
> 
> Not beta read. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoy!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Readers,
> 
> I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! This chapter has lots to it. I did my best to make sure there weren't any huge gaps in the story. But strap in ladies and gents, shit is about to get crazy!
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all are staying happy, healthy, and safe.

After having a snack in the kitchen with Beel and Belphie, Harlow made her way back to her room. It was good to see the twins interact, she could tell their bond ran deeper than the others. At the same time though it felt wrong for her to keep having known Belphegor from Beel. But she also felt like they were hiding something from her too. Every now and then she would catch Beels eyes and he would give her an almost sad smile. When she would catch Belphie looking at her it was with an intense curiosity that she wasn't sure how to react to so she would just smile at him. 

When she opened her door she saw Lucifer sitting on her bed. His hair disheveled. “Ah, there you are. I have some matters I would like to discuss with you.” He said looking at her as she walked into the room. “Ok, am I in trouble?” She asked him cautiously. She knew that she had not behaved properly the last week but honestly her body could not handle the stress she was under and she had battled with depression for years. But the avatar of pride couldn’t understand that could he? He had been there through all of it she knew but she was sure he was not happy with the situation. She had fallen behind in school and in training and it was her fault.

“What?” He asked her, shocked. “No, Harlow. You are not in trouble at all.” He continued. She made her way to the bed and sat down next to him. “Well, what's up then. I haven't seen your hair like this since I have known you.” She said, taking a risk and running her fingers through it in hopes to get it out of his face. He tensed at first, but soon relaxed. “Harlow, there have been some developments in this situation between Michael and yourself. But in order for you to understand I need to tell you a story about my sister Lilith.” 

Harlow sat and listened to him talk for what seemed like hours. He explained who their sister had fallen with them and how she had died in the war but was brought back to life, as a human with the help of Diavolo. He explained that Harlow was the only known living relative of Lilith. “I am sorry I did not tell you this earlier. I could not be sure though within the last week you would hear a word of what I was saying to you.” He said when he was done. 

She sat staring at the hand s for a moment. She wouldn’t have heard him if he had told her before. Any time Michaels name was mentioned she would detach and try and think of something else. Though if she was honest she remembered the night of the ball. “Thank you for telling me this Lucifer.” She said finally. She wasn't angry, she was only more confused at this point. “So all of this is because I hold some ancient power that can either bring peace or be the downfall of all races?” In her mind she could not be that special. She wrote books, enjoyed learning, and learned that she loved getting to know new people, despite being an introvert. 

“Yes. To put it in its simplest terms.” Lucifer answered. He watched her, scared that she would shut them all out again and show no reaction. He hated the husk of a woman she had become in that week and he never wanted to see it again. 

“So how do I make sure there is peace between the races? That is my goal with this power. I wish to end whatever conflict there may be with as little bloodshed as possible.” She said to him. She especially wanted this for the human realm. Unlike the other groups they did not have one defining ruler. Each of the countries was ruled independently and though there was the UN, Harlow highly doubted that they took time to discuss the matters between humans and their immortal counterparts. Potentially there was an order of sorcerers and witches that she didn't know existed… but baby steps into understanding this fuckery. 

Lucifer answered her honestly, “I don't know Harlow. But Diavolo wants the same thing as you do Peace. That is why he set up this exchange program so that the idea of peace could be spread rather than the idea of hate. Hate comes from a lack of understanding and what we as demons want to do is understand. That way we can better ourselves and the communities that we interact with.”

He made his way to the door, but he paused. This conversation had gone so much easier than he had expected. Internally he was sighing with relief, but one thing did weigh on him. If he wasn't in such a mood to be honest he would not have asked, but… “Harlow, why did you think I was upset with you when you found me in your room?” 

“I… Lucifer…” She was struggling to find the words. She paused for a moment before continuing, “The last thing I ever want to do is disappoint you… and with how I handled things I am sure that I have. I only wish to make you proud of me.” The words escaped her lips before she could stop them. If there was one person she could not stand being disappointed in her it was him. 

He turned back to look at her. Her hands were rung in her dress and she was staring at her feet. He could not leave her that way. And she was so wrong about her assumption of what he had seen in the last week. He turned back from the door way and walked over to her. Taking her in his arms and holding her close to his chest, he said the only thing he could think of. “If anyone can slap that prick of an angel the way that you did I would be proud of them.” He paused and then said, “The moment you showed you were determined to defeat Michael, I could have never been more proud in my life. It is a privilege that me and my brothers are going to be able to help you defeat him. When you do I will be the first to reward you.'' When he was done speaking he kissed the top of her head and inhaled her sect. Then he quickly left the room, leaving Harlow dumb founded in his wake. 

~

Harlow sat in her window seat wrapped in a blanket with a cup of tea. They had had dinner and she had cleaned up. She was grateful for the brothers and how lively they were. Listening to them joke around and even argue helped her stay calm. Helped her remain Harlow. Even so, she was tired. And being the introvert that she was, she enjoyed quiet moments. Though she was over thinking about what Lucifer had said to her, about being proud of her. She knew her thoughts should be focused on the other thing he had told her but for some reason Lucifer's view of her was more shocking at the moment. 

She heard her door open and she turned her head to see who it was. Belphegor was walking towards her. Good, she had been wanting to speak with him. However, before she could speak, he began talking first. “You cant tell the others what Lucifer did. He let me free in order to help you and that is the end of it.” He sat next to her and took the tea cup out of her hands.

“But he locked you in the attic!”

Setting the tea cup to the side he grabbed her shoulders. “He did that to protect you… from me.” Harlow's eyes went wide and she tried to pull away. He tightened his grip slightly to keep her in place but not enough to hurt her. “Please, stay still for a moment and listen to me! I am not going to hurt you, not now anyway.”

“Protect me from you? And not now? What do you mean?” Harlow asked him cautiously.

“I hate humans, rather I hated humans. I blamed them for Lilith's death.” He said quietly. “I didn’t know that she continued to live as a human after the war. I was filled with hate and had wanted to punish the humans. When Diavolo came up with the exchange program idea I was against it and in an argument with lucifer I threatened to harm whoever came here. That is why he locked me up.”

Harlow wasn't looking at him, she was trying to process. She wasn't sure if she was in danger or not but didn't dare move. Belphegor brought one of his hands to her chin and forced her to look at him. “Every time I look at you now, I can see her in your eyes. I could never hurt Lilith and that means I could never hurt you. Though I have a lot to work on with my prejudices, I am going to try and learn to like humans again.” His eyes were begging her to say something. Though he knew that hearing that he had wanted to harm her had to have been difficult. 

Harlow said nothing. Her trust in him was gone, not that there had been much there to begin with. She thought about it for a moment longer. “I think you should go.” She finally said. He hung his head and made his way to her door. Just as he was about to leave, Harlow said “You and Lucifer's secret is safe with me. And I’d like to trust you, but I have been hurt too much recently to allow myself to blindly let someone who has openly admitted to wanting to cause me harm. Maybe one day I will be able to, but not for a long time.”

“I will do everything in my power to help you trust me.” He said before leaving. As the door clicked shut behind him her mind spiraled. She was increasingly becoming aware of how real and how dangerous things were getting. Without her magic though, it was seeming like she did not have a chance. To get her magic she would have to form a pact with Belphegor. But she wasn't sure if that was something she truly wanted.

~

One more week passed with no news from the celestial realm. Harlow resumed classes and training with the brothers. She even began getting stealth training with Belphegor, though she refused to be alone with him, one of the other brothers was always there with her. Always saying that she could combine training, which in a way was true, she could learn to use her weapons more effectively and quietly that way. Or she could put her strategies to the test. No one but Belphegor and herself knew her true reasoning for her not wanting to be alone with him. 

It was during one of these sessions where Mammon was fitting her with a new set of knives and a fighting leathers. He wanted to see if the charm he had put on them would help with her stealth and Belphegor was impressed with the ingenuity behind the leathers he hardly showed any disappointment that she had, yet again, brought one of his brothers with her. The lesson though was cut short when Barbatos appeared out of nowhere stating that their presence in the student council room was required immediately.

~

Diavolo called an emergency meeting between the student council and the residence at purgatory hall. Diavolo walked in circles instead of being seated. He had received a letter from Gabriel about a summit meeting between himself, his top advisors and the rulers of the celestial realm. 

Once everyone was seated Diavolo began to speak. “It would seem that our friend Michael has persuaded his brothers into thinking that the program is a joke. According to him it is a way of gaining control over the three realms.” he spat the last few words. Diavolo only wanted peace. That was the only way for his father to move on and to leave him Devildom. It was the only way for him to be able to mandate the treatment of humans and angels as the equals to demons. He did not care if he was unpopular for it. He only knew that it would create a chance for the three races to survive. 

Luke's eyes fell and Simeon did his best to hold back his anger. The archangel was abusing his power and manipulating those around him. They had seen what he had done to Harlow. It was something that was not so easily forgiven. 

“The 3 rulers of the Celestial realm demand that, during the summit meeting, we return their loved ones to them, or we are to prepare for war.” Diavolo stated flatly. 

“Who are outlined as their loved ones?” Solomon asked. He knew the answer but he had to be sure. Diavolo clenched his hands until his knuckles were white, “Raphael requests that Luke is returned. Gabriel requests that Simeon is returned. And Michael, Michael requests that Harlow is returned.” 

The room went completely silent at the demands. There was no way the 7 demon brothers were going to let Harlow go back to that psycho. She would never go back to him if the brothers had anything to say about it. “He can't just demand that.” Levi said. “I mean, I guess I could understand requesting for Simeon and Luke to return but Harlow? She made it very clear that she had no interest in going with him.”

“These are things we can discuss at the summit but we have to be prepared for the worst. We already have forces located in some of our most vulnerable areas but the fact that Michael was still able to show up at my home without being noticed bothers me greatly.” Diavolo said. He still wasn't sure how he had been able to slip through his defenses. “We need to up the number of troops at all the other entrances. Belphegor I need you to dispatch more of your spies so that we can gain an understanding of what to expect from the meeting. I want to be prepared for every possible outcome.” They continued talking defense for a little while longer. Diavolo knew that he could do nothing but wait for the angels to make the first move. 

Simeon and Luke sat and listened. They had no intention of returning to the Celestial realm, not for a while anyway. Simeon would do his best to convince Gabriel that Michael was in the wrong. He could not imagine what was going though Michaels head. Angels were supposed to be protectors of peace but this was far from what Michael was doing. “Perhaps Luke and myself can reach out to some of the other archangels to see what they know. I know Uriel has been involved in all of this, he will likely be able to tell us something.” Simeon offered. He looked over at Harlow, he had texted her a few times over the week but had avoided seeing her. It was too painful to look at her and know that he had done nothing to help. 

“That would be extremely helpful Simeon, thank you.” Diavolo said. “This summit meeting could determine the fate of the 3 realms and all of their residents. It is important that we know as much as possible.” Harlow had remained silent listening to everything that they were saying. Asmo was holding her hand tightly while Beel had his arm slung over the back of her chair protectively. However Diavolos statement made her perk up. She raised her hand that was not holding Asmos and waited to be acknowledged. “Yes, Harlow. Do you have a question?” 

“You said that this is a meeting that could determine the fate of all three realms, yet there are only Angels and Demons invited to this summit to discuss a treaty or set rules for war?” She asked him. 

“Yes, as you know the Human realm does not have any one leader. There are orders of witches and sorcerers who know of Devildom and the Celestial realm but none of them can agree on how to interact.” 

“Immortals can not go around making decisions for their mortal counterparts. If this summit is to happen I would like to represent the Humans as their emissary.” The entire room deadpanned at that moment. “I don't think that is such a good idea Harlow.” Diavolo said. He trusted her yes, but he did not trust Michael. He was not planning on letting her anywhere near the summit meeting despite the demands set by the angels. 

“I am afraid I would have to agree with Diavolo.” Lucifer said and then the rest of the room agreed as well. Harlow stood then dropping Asmos' hand. “Why? I am supposed to have the power of all three races and I am the only known being to possess that. It is true that I can't access my full power yet but if I am the only one who is able to bring peace to the realms let me be involved in this meeting. Let me be involved in the decision making that could determine the fate of my people.” She knew that she had no real power or influence in the human realm but she would and save them from whatever Michael was planning. “Let me do this. Michael wont risk attacking me again, especially in front of the other ruling angels. Besides, they are not the only ones that can make demands.”

They all sat and thought about it for a moment. She did have a point. “What demands do you want Harlow?” Diavolo asked. She only smiled sweetly at him.

~

Harlow sat with the three brothers she had not made pacts with yet. Solomon stood next to her. “I know that I am supposed to stagger making pacts with you all but with the summit meeting in only a few days I need to make them with you all now.” Satan, Belphegor and Lucifer all looked at her like she was crazy. It was true she still did not trust Belphegor but without him there was a chance she would never get her power back. 

“This could kill you Harlow!” Satan said. 

“I know but it has to be done. I need to be as strong as I possibly can be before the meeting. Please, It will at least give me a fighting chance with Michael if things go south.” 

Reluctantly they all agreed. Solomon was there to monitor her vitals and to stave off any excess power if things got out of hand. Satan went first, then Belphegor. She felt normal, nothing was happening and everything appeared to be fine. When it came to Lucifer he sat in front of her and took her hands “Are you ready?” He asked her. “Are you?” was her only response before he began to recite the spell. 

As soon as the pact was formed the room went eerily still. Lucifer moved his hands away from hers and saw that her eyes were now closed. Her breathing turned shallow and she began to lean back in her chair. Solomon reached for her shoulder “Harlow? Are you alright?” As soon as he touched her, her eyes shot open. The entirety of her eyes were glowing, she could feel the power coursing through her, it was nothing like she had ever felt. It was not painful but she could not keep herself from screaming. Solomon put up a protection spell around himself and the brothers and light shot out from her fingertips and shadows curled around her ankles. The force of her scream was enough to break every window in the room they sat in. 

Harlow felt herself get used to the power running through her, her breathing became steady again but her eyes continued to glow. Her appearance had changed slightly too. While she was very much still human she now had a small ring of light encircling her head along with a small set of horns protruding from her forehead. Electric green markings of the phases of the moon glowed on her chest and if they had to guess her pact marks and wings were more than likely glowing as well. 

She was stunning. But the amount of raw power that was sourcing through her at this moment meant that her power would not last too much longer. Solomon reached for her hand “Harlow, you are going to exhaust yourself. Take deep breaths and try and calm down.” He managed to get her to lock eyes with him and breath in time with him. As she did so the halo, horns and glowing eyes disappeared, but the phases of the moon remained across her chest. They resembled a tattoo but the markings glimmered in the light as if it was made of diamonds. 

They had not noticed but the rest of the brothers had gathered after hearing the glass shatter. They all watched the transformation and now saw what her power meant. She was able to wield all 3 magic without harm but that meant she would need to learn how to use all three. She would also need weapons that would withstand the power as well. 

The room was completely silent as they all stared at her in awe. She shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She felt amazing though, as if the weight of 100 worlds had been lifted off of her shoulders. She cleared her throat and said the first thing that came to mind “Well, I think it is safe to say that my magic is free now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I had any artistic talent I would draw what Harlow looks like with her powers fully released. Because it is beautiful in my mind. Sadly... I can not draw.


	26. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The summit meeting. 
> 
> Not beta read

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Readers,
> 
> Don't hate me after this chapter. 
> 
> I hope you all are staying happy, healthy and Safe.

Harlow spent the next few days going threw a whirlwind of changes in her body. She was not used to the amount of pure energy flowing through her and just like flights to other countries and time differences of more than 8 hours, she found herself physically ill. This sort of exhaustion pledged her for days normally, which was why whenever she went overseas she took 2 weeks or more off of work. This time however she could not afford that luxury.

Levi knocked on the door of her bathroom for the 3rd time. “Harlow, are… uh…. Are you alright? I know we were going to practice sailing today but maybe we should do that later.” he heard her vomit again. He was used to it. New recruits didn't have their sea legs all the time. The only difference here was they were on solid, dry ground. “I’m… *guhhg* I’m fine Levi. Just give me a few more moments.” 

After another 15 minutes she emerged from the bathroom. Her hair was in a ponytail, unusual given her love for braids and buns. She was wearing jeans, a very loose fitting t shirt, and sneakers. Her face was pale, tears that shimmered like starlight lingered on her cheeks. She had tried to hide the effects of her new power but it was no use. This was exactly one of the side effects of over stimulation. And the tears that never stopped glowing? Well that was just another side effect. 

She was regularly using her magic but the build up from the last decade was almost too much. She couldn't syphon it off fast enough. She was still attending all of her training and Solomon was at each teaching her how to use magic to enhance her movements. Each blow was powerful and accurate. Harlow managed to get it under control quickly and was able to let out small bursts of her power at a time but it was still not enough. Each morning, for the last 3 mornings she had been sick, each afternoon she had been ripe with energy to the point Diavolo had to step in a few times to drive off her power, and each evening she had been so famished she gave even Beel run for his money on how much one person could eat. 

“You are not fine and I will not have you throwing up in front of my best crew.” Levi said. His admiral voice came through at the command. She would be lying if she said she didn't love it. However today was not the day that she wanted to hear that voce. She had less than 8 hours until the summit meeting and she was till struggling to make herself normal. 

~

Two hours had passed since Levi focused her back into her room when there was a knock on her door. She lay crumpled in a heap on her bed, she had 3 water bottles next to her and an empty trash can just in case. 

The person on the other side of the door did not wait for her to answer. Mammon walked in with Leather armor. The chest plate and the wrist bands each and 3 obsidian stones sewn into them. “Hey my lovely treasure. How are you feeling today?” He asked her as he approached. She only moaned in pain. He picked up her head as he sat down where it had been. Placing her head on his lap he said. “I brought you a present. I think it is going to help with how you feel now.” He said. Taking one of her arms he slipped it into one of the arm guards. “Try focusing your excess energy into the 3 stones above the wrist.” 

Harlow did as she was told and instantly felt relief. Slowly she lifted her arm to take a look at the stones. Mammon grinned at her reaction, knowing that it was all her body would allow her to do for now. “I have fixed your armor and some everyday jewelry with these stones. You will be able to direct your excess magic to them. The will absorb it without draining you and store your excess power.” He said, explaining how it worked. “The stones in the jewelry and in the armor are interchangeable. If you wear the jewelry more often than the armor, when you wear the armor you can change the stones out for the one with the most power, and vice versa” He pulled out 3 boxes from a bag he was carrying. One housed a necklace with one large stone in the center and one stone on either side. The next housed 2 bracelets with the same design as the necklace, just at a slightly smaller scale. Then the final box had earrings, as he opened the box he explained “I am still working on the helmet to go with your armor. Eventually you can trade these stones for the ones in that.” 

He wasn't going to waste any resources with her. He had been perfecting and honing weapons centuries and her powers were the type of challenge to keep the job interesting. She took the necklace and the bracelets and put them on and focused her energy into them. Harlow sat up and reached for one of the water bottles. She did not speak until she had finished the entire thing. “Can I wear these today? I normally start to feel more energy by the time the meeting starts. I would like to appear as normal as possible, these would help me out wonders.”

Mammon explained that that was why he was giving them to her. Soon though he left the room. She channeled as much power into the 11 stones as she could. From what she could tell, there was no cap on how much each could hold. She also noticed that on the back of the necklace it said “With love, the Great Mammon.” Of course, she would never forget who gave her these beautiful pieces. 

~

Harlow showered, changed, did her makeup, and curled her hair. She opted for black wide leg slacks, a cream colored blouse and a gray blazer. She added a pop of color with bright red heels that matched her lipstick. The necklace covered her new marking on her chest, she only wore one of the two bracelets and opted not to wear the earrings. Taking one last look at herself she took a deep breath in. “You can do this Harlow. You have your full power and he isn't going to know what to do with you.”

Her main goal in this meeting was to try and defuse the situation and to make sure no discussion of war were to happen. If discussion of war were to happen well, she would make sure the human world did not get dragged into it. 

She stepped into the main hall of the house of lamentation. Waiting for her were Diavolo, Barbatos, Lucifer, Satan, Beelzebub, Solomon, Simeon, and Luke. The rest of the brothers would go if they could, but they had matters to attend to in Devildom, especially if things went south. Diavolo reached his arm out to her, “Are you ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.” Harlow answered him. And with that they performed a transportation spell to the neutral meeting spot. 

~

The meeting spot was in the human world. There was a small town in Luxembourg called the Village of Schoenfels, located in the Valley of the Seven Castles. They were to meet at Schoenfels Castle, which had once belonged to Mammon. He had lost it in a bet to the archangel Raziel. Then Diavolo bought it back. The Demon brothers had held homes in the human world and had gained the land there during the Third Crusade and he had no intention of letting those lands go. 

They landed in front of the gates which had a sign that read “Closed to the Public. Renovations underway.” Harlow knew better than to ask if they were really allowed to go in. The sign had been there to keep out prying eyes. As soon as they walked through the front door there were many members of Diavolos house staff running around to get things prepared. They only had an hour to go and Diavolo had wanted to get there early. 

“This meeting could last well into tomorrow and even into the next day. There has been a room prepared for each of you. The arch angels have been given rooms at Hollenfels Castle. However, for safety reasons, Harlow your room will be connected with both mine and Lucifer's."

Harlow buzzed with power, fighting to keep her eyes from glowing she took a deep breath and agreed. They made their way to the great hall where the meeting was to be held. There was a fire going and an oval table was set up in the middle. At each end and in the center there were glasses and pitchers of water. To the side setup by the wall next to the door was a coffee and tea station, complete with beagles, yogurts and other small easy to eat snacks. 

If Harlow was being completely honest it looks exactly like a normal meeting room setup, extremely corporate complete with the fake niceties. She noticed that there were notepads and pens set up in front of each chair. There were also name tags. Michael had been placed at the opposite end of the table from her. She took a deep breath and took her seat, shortly followed by the others. Solomon sat next to her as another representative for the humans but he had told her, “In my many years I have been held many positions of power, including king, however, it is an honor to let you lead me and potentially the other humans as well. I'm here for your back up, nothing more.” On her other side was Beel, who had already started snacking on the food in the room. She smiled softly to herself, leave it to Beel to make her feel like at least one thing about this craziness was normal. 

They talked quietly amongst themselves. However, when the door swung open and in walked 5 archangels, the room was deathly silent. She watched as one with dark hair, dark skin, and chocolate colored eyes took a seat at the head, Gabriel’s seat. Michael took the seat to his left. Then one with light brown hair, green eyes, and pale skin took a seat to his right, Raphael. Then another with red hair, grey eyes and freckles skin took a seat next to Raphael, Azrael’s seat. And finally the last one, one with brown hair, amber eyes, and a tan complexion sat next to Michael. In Uriel’s seat. 

Harlow’s eyes locked on the man. What was he doing here? There was no way she had known Alex for too long… almost as long as she had known Michael. But she had met him because of Michael. Alex (Uriel) only dared for a second to make eye contact with her. Her eyes flashed with anger and recognition. He could have sworn her eyes actually glowed for a moment. Soon though she looked away and turned to the human man sitting next to her and whispered something in his ear. He nodded and wrote something down on his paper. 

“Right, we are all here now. Gabriel, you called this meeting, would you like to begin?” Diavolo asked. 

“With me today I have brought the other two ruling archangels, Michael and Raphael. We also have Uriel, the archangel of repentance and Azrael, the archangel of death.” He made the introductions. Harlow swallowed hard, she pushed her power to the stones. She couldn't lose herself to her emotions, not yet. Diavolo did the same with the demons and stated that the angels knew Simeon and Luke. He did not mention Harlow or Solomon though. 

When he was finished he looked pointedly at Harlow. “Right, I am Harlow Williams, and this is Solomon. We are here to represent the humans in this summit. We believe that if decisions are being made for the 3 realms, each of the races should be represented.” While the angels nodded, Michael huffed a laugh. “Ignore him, ignore him.” Harlow thought to herself. And with that discussions started. 

They talked for hours with no real resolutions made. The main thing that was discussed was the exchange program and whether or not it should continue. The night Michael came to devildom was not even mentioned. It was almost midnight though and they needed some rest. Gabriel called it, Diavolo and Harlow agreed. She began to gather her things. She had kicked off her shoes and taken off her blazer about 3 hours into the meeting. She grabbed her notebook, beel was at her side but she felt two sets of eyes on her. She glanced up and saw Michael looking at her before leaving the room. The next set belonged to Uriel or Alex or whoever he was. He looked like he wanted to say something to her but was called away by Gabriel before he could. 

~

The next morning the discussions started again. This time things were going more in depth and finally, Diavolo brought up the night of the ball. “Regardless, there needs to be consequences for Michael's actions. Angels are welcome in Devildom at any time if they are there peacefully. However, he was forcefully trying to take one of my temporary residents. She clearly did not want to go with him and he even caused her harm.” Diavolo passed around printed photos of her injuries. She was not sure when they were taken but she was glad they had been. “Those are just the physical injuries. There was, and still is, emotional trauma from this event as well.” 

The archangels all scowled at the photos. Harlow saw what looked like sadness in Uriel's eyes as well. Then Michael spoke, “Who is to say that these did not come from you demons?” Uriel looked at him shocked. Harlow's mouth dropped and her demon companions all snarled at him. “What did you say?” Lucifer asked lethally. “I said who is to say that you aren’t the ones to have caused those injuries. You have been brainwashing my Harlow since day one.” 

Simeon spoke next, “If I may speak on this matter,” Gabriel nodded at him, giving him the go ahead. But before he could talk Luke chimed in. “Michael tried to forcefully take Harlow. When she fought back he... he” Luke stopped, he couldn't finish what he was saying. The young angel looked down at his hands trying to hide his anguish. “He caused the bruising on her neck.” Simeon finished for him. Uriel fidgeted in his seat, he wanted to speak up about what he had seen happen to Harlow in the time he had known her but he was just as guilty as Michael. He had covered it all up, thinking that maybe things would get better or that it was somehow the right thing so that this person with tremendous power was protected. 

Michael leaned back in his chair. “I knew that the demons had somehow gotten to you two as well. I could never hurt her.” He looked around the room and then directly at Harlow. “I would never hurt you, not on purpose.”

Harlow stared at her hands and quietly said “That's a lie.”

“I am sorry darling you are going to have to speak up.”

“That is a lie!” Harlow yelled. Her eyes were lit up and all of her marks were glowing, they could be seen through the fabric of her shirt. She slammed her hands down on the table as she stood, it sent an electric shock through the table and shattered the glasses and pitchers. “How dare you say that. They have been nothing but kind to me. You though Michael, you have caused more suffering and heartache than anyone person should have to endure.”

“I think you need to calm down Harlow.” Diavolo’s voice was calm but there was a bit of warning. She had begun to shift into her other from showing her halo and horns. Small objects around her had begun to float and when she spoke it sounded like hundreds of voices were talking at once. 

“You forced your mark on me, you erased my memory of all the pain you caused me and for what? Out of protection? Out of love? Or was it to protect your own image of yourself?”

“Harlow…” Diavolos' voice warned again. The faces of the angels in the room were of complete and total shock. she had transformed into something beautiful and terrifying. Something they had never seen before, the embodiment of humans, angels and demons.

Michael smirked at her before faking concern, “What did they do to you Harlow? Do you see what they have done to this poor human woman?” The room watched as he stood. She sent out a whip of her power forcing him back into his chair. “You will not speak until I am done telling your brothers what YOU have done.” She said. Sending another tendril of magic his way forcing his mouth shut. Taking a few deep breaths she managed to shift so that her halo and horns were put away, but her marks and eyes continued to glow. The other angels in the room listened to everything. Only Uriel, Simeon and Luke showed any emotion as she spoke. 

“We need to discuss this among ourselves. We will take our leave and resume this tomorrow.” Gabriel said. 

On the 3rd day of the meeting Harlow sat in her chair waiting for the arrival of the angels. When the door opened only one of the angels walked in. It was Azrael. He pulled out a document and began to read. “The Celestial realm requests the release of the angel exchange students immediately. We also request that the human woman be sent back to the Celestial realm for treatment. This is the Celestial realm's formal declaration of war against Devildom on the grounds of illegal human experimentation. As keepers of the peace we can not sit by and let more humans be turned into cross breeds. You have 72 hours to prepare yourselves. ”Before anyone could say anything the room went pitch black and faded into nothingness. 

~

The next thing she knew, Harlow found herself in a brightly lit gold and white decorated room. She sat up and ran from the bed she was in over to the window, as she went to push it up a burst of blue light sent her flying back. “It’s funny how Azrael’s powers work. When exposed to them long enough he can make even the most powerful beings sleep like the dead. Though none of the demons know that, it is hard to get them in a room with him.”

Harlow froze at the voice. She sat on the ground refusing to face him. He squatted down in front of her. He placed a clear band around her wrist. “This is just to make sure you don't hurt yourself or anyone else with your powers.” He brought his hand to her chin and gently forced her to look at him. Her eyes met his electric blue ones. “Welcome to the Celestial realm Harlow.” Michael said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Luxemburg... random right? But it worked out! Also the places mentioned in this chapter are real places. 
> 
> I know, I hate myself too for how this chapter ended...


	27. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ****TRIGGER WARNING: contains threats of sexual assault. See note at beginning of story.****
> 
> Michael is a dick, like always. 
> 
> Harlow has a heart to heart with Uriel.
> 
> Belphegor visits Harlow in her dreams. 
> 
> Not beta read

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers,
> 
> I hope you all are doing well and that you are enjoying the new year! 
> 
> Quick note about the trigger warning, I have put *** to mark where it starts and stops so that you can skip over it if you wish. 
> 
> I hope you all are staying happy, healthy, and safe.

All hell had broken loose in the student council room, which had been transformed into the war council room. Satan was screaming at generals, even threw knives at a few of them when they asked for some more direct instructions. Asmo was trying to calm him down which only made him angrier. Mammon had the entire armory set up to the side and was registering and handing out weapons to demons as they arrived, per their draft order that Diavolo had Barbatos send out the second they woke up and realized harlow was gone. Beel and Belphegor did wellness inspections of the soldiers. Levi was on his ship in the north sea close to one of the celestial realm portals to devildom. Lucifer sat next to Diavolo and watched as they oversaw the preparations. All of them in their demon forms.

Diavolos dark power had been circling at his feet since the event of losing three of his four exchange students. It had been 2 days and he had not slept once, and he knew the brothers had not slept either. Nerves were high and everyone was on the edges of their seats. After what the angels had pulled, Diavolo wouldn't be surprised if they showed up early.

Lucifer glanced around his room. “When we win this, when we get Harlow back, I ask your permission to punish Michael In anyway I deem fit.” They were some of the first words he had spoken when not asked a direct question. “Gladly, just let the rest of us help. And make it slow.” Diavolo said back to his friend. The room darkened just a little bit with the response. 

~

Harlow sat alone in the room Michael had left her in. In the last 2 days he had come back to visit her 3 times. The first time to test if their bond was still present, which it was, but the cap on the power was permanently gone. The next to see if, what he called the ring of light, was helping control her amount of power, which it was. It seemed like with it on, he and the rest of the archangels were stronger than her. And the 3rd to see why his wards around the windows in her room kept going off. 

Harlow kept trying to tamper with them. He could suppress her power but he couldn't get rid of it entirely. Not anymore. “Stop messing with the wards Harlow! You are not going anywhere.” He said as he took her by the shoulders and pushed her to one of the chairs near the fireplace, that was also warded so she was unable to burn the room to the ground. “Why can't you just be a good girl and sit still. All of this would be so much easier if you would have just come with me in the first place.” 

****  
“Oh fuck you Michael.” She said standing up from the chair he had forced her into. He pushed her back down into the chair. “Don’t tempt me Harlow.” He said towering over her. She lowered her eyes and brought her leg up crossing them under herself as he backed away. She held her breath and did not release it until she heard the door click shut. She sat and began to cry angry tears.   
****

She wasn't sure how long she had sat there. She didn't move when a knock came to her door, or when she heard it open. She only looked in that direction when a familiar voice said. “Harlow?” Uriel stood with the door closed behind him. “Harlow, how are you doing? Are… are you hurt anywhere?”

“Don't pretend to care. I know what you did. The instant I saw you in the meeting room my power let me tap into my ‘forgotten’ memories. I saw you alter them, saw you bend the truth to be more convenient to him.” His eyes dropped, shame, sadness, and pity for her showed on his face. “I thought I was doing the right thing.” 

“The right thing? Really? The right thing would have been stopping him in the first place, the right thing would have been to let me remember and take me out of an abusive relationship. The right thing would have been to let me stay in devildom! You let them take me! You didn't speak up even though you had seen all of what had happened to me the 3 years I was married to him. Simeon saw it too that night! But you made him forget what I fully looked like did you? That is why it took him so long to put the pieces together when we met in devildom!”

“I am sorry Harlow, I am so sorry.” He said quietly. He reached out to touch her hand. She pulled it away quickly. “Don’t you dare touch me. Ever again.” The entire situation was completely fucked up if she thought about it. She had been betrayed by one of her best friends who was apparently the angel of repentance. But, he had many of his own sins to repent for. 

“What can I do? I miss you Harley.” He was the only one who could get away with calling her that. She had hated the nickname. And people had kept trying to push it on her, especially after suicide squad came out. “Please let me make this up to you, I will do anything just to have you forgive me.”

Make this up to her, how could he even ask this sort of forgiveness of her? He had lied to her for years. “I don’t know if I can ever forgive you, but if you are that desperate, tell the goddamn truth and get me the fuck out of here. Every second that I spend here and close to Michael, do you know how scared I am?” Her voice cracked. “I can't do that, and he isn't going to hurt you, not here. I won't let that happen.” He said.

“Just like you didn’t let it happen before?”

“That was different, I know what I did was wrong now, and Gabriel and Raphael are too close. He wouldn't stand a chance if he hurts you here.” 

Anger coursed through her. “Get out.”

“What?”

“Get. Out.” 

“Harlow I know you are upset but…”

“GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY ROOM!” Harlow screamed and she released as much power as she could in his direction. It did nothing but ruffle his hair, the clear band glowed as it soaked in what it would not let her release. He quickly left her room, only to hear her scream of frustration as he walked down the hall. 

The war was starting tomorrow and there was nothing she could do to help her friends. She cried herself to sleep knowing that she could lose them all by the end of this. Knowing that she could end up stuck in that room until Michael was sick of her. 

~

She dreamed she was in the peaceful clearing again. Belphegor was under the tree standing with open arms. She ran into them. She didn't care that she didn't fully trust him. At this point she was desperate to see someone friendly and familiar. She held on to him tightly. “Please, please don't let me go. Please.” She cried into his shirt. He was soft and warm and the familiar smell of Devildom filled her nose. 

He hugged her back and smoothed his hand over her hair. “I know, shh, I wish I didn’t have to let you go, but I need to ask you a few things.” He sat down with her. “Do you know where you are?” 

She described the room to him and explained the wards on the door and windows. He nodded in understanding. “Has he, or anyone else hurt you in any way?” His beautiful purple eyes held a threat in them as he asked it, promising retribution if anyone had. “No.” She answered him. “Can you use your magic?” She sighed then and nodded. “I can but he put this stupid bracelet, that he calls the ring of light, on me and it only allows me to use a fraction of my power. I can't take it off, believe me I have tried.”

He scowled. He knew the ring of light and knew that the only 2 beings that could take it off of her were Lucifer and Michael. “I have a network of spies that are working on getting in touch with Simeon via Solomon. He is higher ranking and more experienced than Luke. Harlow we are doing our best to get you out of there. But I have to go now. I’ll visit you again soon.”

She tried to cling onto him as her vision of him faded. She woke with a start, it was still dark. Her room was quiet and empty. It was the 3rd day, which meant The celestial realm would be marching on Devildom. It meant that she could only sit and wait. She crossed to the window and waited for the sun to rise. 

~

“Over all she seems unharmed. She is scared though.” Belphegor Reported to Diavolo and Lucifer. “I can't be sure but from what she is describing she is being held in the palace in the center of the city.” Lucifer pinched the bridge of his nose. All of this was giving him a headache. If he had it his way he, his brother, Diavolo, Barbatos and Solomon would storm the palace tomorrow but for some reason, even after all of this Diavolo still wanted to maintain a relationship with the Celestial realm.

“How do we get to her?” Diavolo asked.

“We don't.” Belphegor stated flatly. “But if Solomon can get in contact with Simeon, we may have a chance of getting to her through them.”

“Go get Solomon.” Diavolo ordered. He was rougher and meaner than normal. His demon was definitely showing and he was going to make a point to have Michael see it.


	28. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raphael makes an appearance. 
> 
> Not beta read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers,
> 
> This chapter is short. Sorry about that, and that it has taken me a while to post a chapter.. Life has been a bit crazy, and my 9-5 is more like a 9-9 right now. Thanks so much for reading and sticking with me. According to word this is, so far, 94-ish pages long so that's kind of cool! I have a story I have been working on for years that is only 100 pages. *shrugs shoulders* 
> 
> I truly truly hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe.

Simeon waited by one of the gates that linked to the human world. Most of the guards had been moved and left several unguarded for hours at a time. It had taken him hours to give Gabriel the slip but when he was called into a meeting he was finally able to get free. Just beyond the gate he saw a white haired figure appear. “I have never been so happy to see you in my entire life.” Solomon said as they made eye contact. “How is she? How is Harlow?”

“I don’t know, Michael has only let Uriel see her and from what I can gather, it didn’t go well.” Simeon answered. “I want to see her but I am not sure if anyone would let me. Michael has been especially erratic with everything. He is making the call to hold off his legions until he deems fit. Gabriel and Raphael don't agree but know that they can't do anything about it. The level of loyalty that Michael has with them is almost cult like.” 

~

Harlow was bored… she walked a figure 8 patron in her room. She could not remember the last time she had so much of nothing to do. She would find it relaxing except for Michael. She had been on her guard ever since he had treated her. She also swore to any god out there that if he touched her she would skin him alive.

It was noon on the 4th day of her being there which meant it was day 1 into whatever fight was happening. She had only been visited by lower level angels who brought her water and things to eat. Harlow desperately wanted to open a window to get some fresh air but the wards prevented her. Michael had also said she would go outside with him, or would not go outside at all. She opted for inside. 

She would not spend anymore time with him than she had to. In fact she had not responded to him at all in the last 2 days at all. Much to her amusement too, it frustrated him to no end that she didn't respond to him. “At least say weather the food was good or not.” Nothing she sat staring out the window. 

“Fine, i suppose I will try again tomorrow.” He said slamming the door behind him. She winced at the loud noise it made. Shortly after though, her door opened. The angel with the light brown hair and green eyes from the meeting was there. Peeking out from behind him was a small blond angel. 

“Luke!'' Harlow cried. She ran over to the door, only to have the larger angel, Raphael, she was pretty sure hold up his hand and stop her. Her excitement faded. “He isn't allowed to come in, but he would not stop bugging me until he knew you were alright… I told you Luke she is fine. Now run along and get back to your studying.” Panicking she stuttered out “W-wait! Cant I say hi?”

Luke gave her a sad look doing his best to inch his way into her room. “I'm afraid not, Michael has warded this room against him and Simeon, they can not enter this room.” Harlow’s face fell. “But this is the first time I have seen a familiar face,” she thought.

“Oh.” She said instead, and Luke walked away shooting one more sorrowful look in her direction. She got as close to her door as she could to peek out without setting off any wards. She also did her best to avoid the other angel who was lingering. Backing away she decided to remain silent for a moment. When he only stood there she finally asked, “Is there something I can do for you?” 

Raphael’s eyes met hers, to her surprise they were warm and full of concern. “Ah, yes and no I suppose.” he said as he closed the door behind him. “I wanted to talk to you about the last day of the meeting.”

Harlow raised an eyebrow. “What about it?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “I wanted to let you know that I am sorry that it happened that way. I believe that there was much more to discuss and actual conversations should have happened on the third day. Uriel and myself were against taking you in such an unethical manner.”

“It's good to know at least some angels are against kidnapping.” Harlow scoffed. The thought of Uriel made her sick though. “Don't talk to me about Uriel, or Alex, whatever you want to call him. He has made his bed and he can lay in it.”

“You speak as if he had a choice. You must understand that defying or going against one of the three ruling archangels can result in your wings being taken. While he was there on earth to keep an eye on things, he was still Michael's charge. Going against him, without going through the proper channels could have resulted in that for him.”

“Everyone always has a choice. Michael chose to lie, Uriel chose to cover it up, I chose to leave, Michael chose to continually insert himself into my life.” She paused and thought for a moment. “You still chose to take me, even if you were against how it was done.”

He thought for a moment before answering. He was truly taking her words into consideration. “I don't have a very good answer for this, but I chose to let this happen for different reasons than my brothers. They want you as a bargaining chip. I wanted you to come so that I could help you. I am the archangel of healing, and you have so many internal wounds. I could sense them, and the second your power was unleashed I could feel them 10 fold. Harlow what was done to you was not fair and it is in no way your fault.”

Harlow just looked at him, eyebrows still raised and arms crossed over her chest. “Are you telling me you knew what was happening the entire time?”

“No. We received reports but not in great detail. I only saw what had happened when your powers unblocked the memories Uriel suppressed for you.”

~

Diavolo and Lucifer leaned over a map they had set up in a tent on the outskirts of one of the camps that had been set up. The angels had attacked through one of the west gates first. The demons made a large dent in their numbers, but the angels were no laughing matter, bringing down a good portion of the demons there as well. 

“For every demon lost there were 2 angels and we have managed to push them back. For now.” Diavolo said he moved pieces around the map. Give the order to have all the injured treated. All of them, including the angels.” Lucifer made the call to Satan who was in charge in that section of the front. 

There was something very strange about all of this though. None of Michael's soldiers had been there. Not a single one. Michael was never one to back down from a fight and the fact that he and his men were not there, set alarm bells ringing in Lucifer's Mind. “Satan, don't let your guard down. I know you have only met Michael a handful of times but there is something strange about him not being there today.”

“I thought the same thing.” Satan said on the other end of the phone before hanging up. Trying his best to hold in his frustration, Lucifer turned back to Diavolo. “What do you think they are planning?” Diavolo asked Lucifer. 

For the first time in thousands of years Lucifer was uncertain and admitted to it. “I can not pretend to know what Michael is planning. All I do know is that we should be prepared for the worst.”


	29. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ***GAME CHAPTER 44 SPOILERS!***
> 
> Raphael and Harlow develop some sort of friendship.
> 
> Michael is being a creep and is doing his best to gain control over Harlow
> 
> Luke, Simeon and Solomon are all trying to figure out how they are going to get Harlow out of the Celestial Realm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Readers,
> 
> I know it has been a while. I am sorry for that, I have been kinda struggling in my own world, but I hope you enjoy this chapter. I also am so sorry I haven't replied to comments! I promise I will be better this chapter! 
> 
> I hope all of you are doing well we are only 17 days into the year and it is already crazy. 
> 
> I hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe! Emphasis on all three.

“No, you can not have access to my mind,” Harlow said. Her and Raphael’s conversation had turned into him trying to understand her trauma, but it was only making things worse. She could feel him reaching out to her mind begging her to let him in. She understood that he was the angel of healing but all angels had some form of healing power, and she had had enough of angels messing with her mind. “Harlow please let me in, I can help ease some of this pain, help you understand. It will help me understand what exactly Uriel did to get rid of your memories. I can fix his mistakes.” 

Despite her not trusting any of the angels at this point she had agreed to sit and talk with Raphael. He was different from Michael and she would have kicked Uriel out of the room the instant she saw him. Raphael was different, he did not know her before all of this, or at all really. Despite not trusting him, he had a calming presence to him. They had been sitting in the chairs by the fireplace but Harlow stood and got as close to the window as she could without triggering an alarm. “I don’t want anyone in my head, I don’t want anyone taking my memories and changing them. I know you are trying to help but don’t. If you want to understand why this happened talk to your brother. I am sure Michael would be happy to share his thoughts with you.”

She turned the back to him, missing the frown on his face grow deeper and his eyes darken more than he had intended. “That is the problem. Michael has not been forthcoming with his plans for after this conflict with Devildom is over. He also is with holding his legions form the front line. He controls almost half of the Celestial realms military forces.” Harlow turned to face him confused. “What do you mean with holding? Hasn’t the war already started?”

“I was hoping you could tell me, or maybe your memories could give me a glimpse of what he could be planning.” He paused considering his words, “The fighting has started yes. Though the first battle that took place … did not go in the Celestial Realms favor. Gabriel lost some good men in that fight.” His tone was sorrowful. Harlow swallowed hard. She was glad devildom had not lost but she did not like the idea of angels dying either. She had to answer him truthfully though, “I didn't know that Michael was an angel until a few weeks ago, we may have been married yes but he never shared anything like that with me. Thinking back on it now, he really didn't share much with me.” 

“Maybe there is a detail you missed, if you would only let me in…”

She cut him off, “No, my answer is no and will always be no. Again if you want answers, talk to Michael.” He sighed, he understood and would not push the issue any farther. “Well, if you need anyone to talk to please let me know.” He made his way to the door. Harlow glanced at the clock on the mantel. It was almost 6:00pm, their conversation had lasted for hours, but she wasn't ready to be alone yet. It was almost time for Michael to make his next appearance and she did not want to be alone for that. Not after his not so subtle threat. “W-wait. Please can you stay a little longer?” He turned back to look at her, confusion written on his face. “I- I don’t want to be alone when Michael comes back.” The confusion turned to concern and then to something harder and more menacing. “I will stay as long as you’d like.” He didn't need to ask her why, he knew she was afraid of Michael. Schooling his features to be more pleasant he sat back down and asked “How is Asmo doing? Is he still sneaking away to the human world to party with the mortals?”

Harlow laughed, “I am not sure but I wouldn’t put it past him. Though if he were caught doing that I am sure Lucifer would string him up by his ankles in the stairway.” Raphael laughed. “My, my, has lucifer gone soft? I recall one time I had to chase after Asmo with a spear just to get him to come back to the palace to receive his punishment. Hanging him from his ankles seems too light a punishment.” 

“Oh now you have to tell me this story, Asmo has never mentioned that to me.” Harlow said giggling at the thought. Her amusement was cut short though when a deep voice came from the doorway. “Ah, it seems you are talking now, thank you Raphael for helping my wife come back to herself.” Harlow gripped the arms of her chair, knuckles turning white. Raphael studied her before looking over at his brother. “I wanted to see if she was alright after everything she has endured. I don’t know why you didn't call on me to examine her. She has-”

“I am taking care of her, if I believed that she needed your healing I would have called.” Michael pushed off of the door frame and made his way to the seating area. He stood behind Harlow and placed a hand on her shoulder, as if to say ‘mine’. Harlow noticeably flinched at his touch and Raphael could not help but sneer at his brother. “Clearly she is not alright, her reactions to you are telling brother.” 

“I have told you and Gabriel those Demons have brainwashed her against me. Now don’t you have some wounded angels from the last battle that need some attending to?” Michael retorted. He watched Raphael’s face turn ashen at the mention of the battle and knew he had won. “I trust you can see your way out.” Michael said. 

Harlow swore she felt the temperature in the room drop as soon as the door shut behind Raphael. She jumped when she felt Michael's hand move to the back of her neck, tugging lightly at her hair. He had bent down behind her and pulled her head closer to his. His lips hovered close to the nape of her neck and she felt his words slide over her skin, “If you aren’t going to talk to me, you aren’t going to speak to anyone at all. You are mine, Harlow.” She tried to move out of his grip, but the fist in her hair only tightened. His lips ghosted a kiss along her jawline, before he moved away from her entirely. “Your dinner is on your dresser.” He said before leaving the room. 

~

Raphael hated to see the way Harlow reacted to Michael. He was not sure what had happened between the two of them since she had been brought there but Harlow had for a moment let him into her mind, allowing the memory of Michael looming over her saying “Don’t tempt me, Harlow”. Raphael had been trying the entire time he was visiting with her to get her to let him in. Then the carefully selected memory had come to him and he did not like that it was a memory from only a few days ago. 

He thought this over all the way to the angel side of the border of one of the 7 gates between the realms. Waiting for him were many injured, and even more dead. He turned his attention to Azrael who was examining some of the dead “There are only half of the soldiers here, where are the rest?” Azrael looked up at him and pointed to a table nearby that had an opened letter up top it. “We received word from Diavolo. He has taken any injured and surviving angels we were not able to get back with us. He states that they will all be treated but will be held in good conditions until the situation is rectified or Harlow is returned to them.”

Raphael whipped at his face as he walked over to the table to pick up the letter and read it for himself. “Until this conflict is over we won't be seeing them again. I understand it, but we will have to convince Michael to let us use his troops. Has he granted you an explanation as to why he is holding back on this Az?” Azrael had moved to a different body at this point, gathering what information he could about the cause of death. “He has not, all he has said is he wishes to wait.” 

Raphael thought for a moment, “do you ever wonder if maybe taking the girl was a mistake? I can’t help but think that maybe Michael has an ulterior motive here.” Azrael looked up then, it was unusual for him to question the actions of the other head archangels. “We both know how Michael can be, and the fact that he married this woman could have caused some of this. However, his task before father fell into permanent sleep was to keep the “Child of 3” safe from all evil.”

Raphael rolled his eyes, knowing quite well what the task was and what the prophecy said. “Yes, but there is already destruction by going down this course. We could have wrongly assumed that the line in the prophecy stating ‘when the child is taken by force the realms will fall to chaos and darkens, the light snuffed out by the hand of evil’ meant taken by the demons.” Azrael shrugged, “Could be, but she was taken by force to devildom too.”

Raphael said nothing, turning his attention to the injured angels in the tent. He would go to the library later and reread the prophecy. It had been ages since he had looked at it and could only remember parts of it. 

~

“Luke, did you find out where Michael is keeping her?” Simeon asked. The small angel had just made his way to the edge of the forest. They had met there each morning since Simeon was able to get in contact with Solomon. Luke nodded. “She is in the palace on the 4th floor of the west wing. Her room is warded though, I can't go in and neither can Simeon.”

“Do you know what kind of wards are in place?” Solomon asked. He was not well versed in Celestial magic but he was sure some human and devildom spells could work to break them. “No,” Luke answered, “But it seems to be against certain people, Raphael implied that only Simeon and I could not enter the room.” Solomon pondered this. “Interesting. He seems very confident then that no one else would come to help her then.” Simeon nodded in agreement. “He possibly has it warded against the demon brothers as well but I don’t think that Michael has even thought about the possibility of the human realm getting involved in this. They have been largely kept in the dark.” 

Solomon smiled at this. “That is a mistake then, I have recently rebuilt my ties with the warlock association. It is only a small portion of the human population that holds magic but it is better than just myself. If I am able to get to her they will offer her sanctuary in the human realm.” 

Simeon seemed excited about the idea but Luke shook his head. “That would be good, but her power is almost useless. I noticed that Michael has placed the ring of light around her wrist to absorb her power if used.” 

“What does that mean? All we have to do is take it off right?” Solomon asked. 

Simeon frowned before answering. “Only Michael and Lucifer have the ability to remove the ring of light. If Harlow escapes, Michael will know exactly where she is going.” 

“Michael still hasn't let his men fight in this war yet either.” Luke chimed in. “I think he is planning something big. If Harlow escapes and goes to Lucifer, he could send every single soldier under his command after her and if the demon army is as spread out as the rest of the angel army is, they will be overrun.” 

“We can't just leave her here though. Belphegor has had contact with her in her dreams and he has even said all he can feel from her is fear. We have to come up with a plan, and right now that may be me getting her out of there and taking her to the humans. With or without powers she can't stay here.” 

~

Harlow crawled into her bed, slipping the knife from her dinner tray under her pillow. She would not be defenseless, she wouldn't be able to escape on her own but she could cause some damage if she really tried. The goose bumps that Michael had left had lingered and she could not get warm, no matter how much she stoked the fire. She had only picked at her food. Her door clicked open, she knew who it was without having to look. “You hardly ate anything.” Michael said walking over to her. She brought her knees up to her chest and turned her head away from him. “I know you are mad at me but you need to eat something. You are getting too thin as it is.” 

He stroked the top of her head willing her to look at him. She didn't though. Again she said nothing to him. He was getting tired of the silence. “You are going to have to talk to me at some point Harlow.” He thought for a moment, and he had an idea. “The last few meals you have not eaten much. I will have the lower angels stop bringing you food unless you specifically ask me for it.” It was cruel he knew but he needed her to rely on him, needed her to communicate only with him. He needed to get her back on his side however he could. Without her he could not rule the 3 realms, but he could only do that if she was completely under his control, and right now she was denying him at every turn. 

Her eyes burned with tears, he wasn’t making sense. Why would he tell her she was getting too thin but then withhold food from her. She was angry, tired, scared, and she hated that he was somehow getting an upper hand even more than he already had. “I will be back to see you in the morning.” Was all he said before he left, taking the try of food with him, not noticing the missing knife. 

~

Days passed with little news, but Belphegor would visit her briefly each night in her dreams. Raphael had stopped by at least once per day sneaking her food after she had explained that she didn't trust the food coming from Michael. He didn't ask questions, he only probed at her mental walls in hopes to get more out of her. They stayed secure though. Each time he would leave he would say, “Let me know how else I can help.” She would respond with “Let me go home.” He would say, “You know I can't.” To which she would replay, “Then come back tomorrow.”

Michael would come and try and get her to talk to him. Telling her everything from how much he missed hearing her voice to how he could not believe that she was being such a stubborn bitch and she should be grateful that she was not in the dungeon now. Each jab at her sunk deeper and deeper each day his touches became more frequent and she began to feel like she was losing her mind because one second he was kind and the next he was unrelentingly cruel. Only scaring her further emotionally, deep down she knew he could not cause her physical damage here. The only things keeping her grounded were Belphegor and Raphael, without them she would have broken to Michaels will, again.

One particular day, a two weeks or so after Raphael's first visit, Michael came strolling into her room in one of the best moods she had ever seen him in. “Good morning Harlow, I trust you slept well. I have news from the front.” He was like a kid at Christmas, he was so excited he could not contain his glee. “I know you won't answer me, but we are celebrating tonight. We have brought down Devildom’s Navy. Isn't that splendid?” Harlow let out a small gasp. He turned to face her after throwing open her curtains. “Don’t worry my dear, it will only be a matter of time before the rest of Devildom falls with them.” He was laughing uncontrollably now. 

Harlow's eyes widened in terror “Levi'' she whispered. He stopped laughing then. “What did you say? Did you say one of their names?” His eyes were wild then. She said nothing. He rushed over to her and pulled at her hair to get her to look at him. “What did you say Harlow? Hum? Are you mourning the dead devils? Do you truly care for them that much?” When she didn't answer he pulled harder and shook her. “Answer me!” He yelled. He didn't notice as her hand slipped under her pillow and gripped the knife she had been hiding for this exact situation. When he stopped shaking her she pulled out the knife and did her best to aim at his chest. Disoriented she hit his shoulder. He let go of her in a cry of pain. Blood splattered her hand and face.

Moving quickly she got out of bed and ran to the door. She flung it open and threw herself out of it. There was a shock that went through her but the further she ran from the door the less noticeable it was. She rounded a corner and ran straight into Raphael and Uriel, who were being closely followed by Luke and Simeon. They all looked at her in shock. She could only imagine what she might look like brown hair pulled out of her bun white nightgown and pale skin drenched in blood. “Harlow? What happened?” Raphael asked her. She felt him reaching for her mind and she opened up letting him see everything that had happened since she had been in the Celestial realm.


	30. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its short, its not sweet.
> 
> Simeon and Luke work to get Harlow to Solomon. 
> 
> Raphael is out for blood, but so is Michael.
> 
> Uriel is struggling with his loyalty, but is kinda useless (right now).
> 
> Not Beta Read

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Readers!
> 
> Happy Thursday! I hope that you all are having a great week. I am, I have tomorrow off of work so I get a long weekend. I am very excited, even though I don't do things lol. 
> 
> I hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe!

Soaking wet, from water and blood, Leviathan walked into Diavolo and Lucifer’s war tent. The Two standing looking at the map. Belphegor stood close by watching them as they talked. They all looked over at him. “The Navy is gone. I thought you’d like to know.” Clutching a large gash at his side leviathan fell first to his knees and then flat on his face unconscious. 

Rushing over to him Beel lifting him up, Lucifer called for a cot to be brought in, along with the medics. Diavolo stood there in shock. “What does he mean the Navy is gone?” Lucifer looked over at his friend and said, “I think you know what it means.” 

~

Raphael saw her memories and what went on behind the closed door of her room when Michael was there made his stomach turn. If he had known he would have had one of his own guards in her rooms at all times. He understood now why she was so desperate to get out. “Simeon, Luke, take Harlow to my office. Uriel, you and I have to have a talk with Michael.”

Simeon rushed up to her and wrapped his arms around her beginning to lead her away from the archangels. Luke hesitated though, he knew he needed to follow, he knew whatever had happened had been bad. He just was having a hard time wrapping his head around the fact that Michael was the cause of all of this pain. After a few moments though he hurried after them.

Instead of making their way to Raphael's office though Simeon made his way to his room in the east wing of the palace. “Luke, try and get in contact with Solomon. If we don't act now we may not get another chance to get her out of here.” Simeon said. Harlow was still too shocked to say anything. 

They reached his room and he sat her down on his bed. “Are you hurt anywhere?” He asked her. Luke was in the background talking quietly with someone. “It’s Michael's blood.” Harlow said quietly. “I snuck a knife off of one of my dinner trays and hid it. He came into my room and started telling me something about the Devildom navy being gone. When I said Levi’s name he lost it and started shaking me. I couldn't think of how else to get away from him so I stabbed him.” She rushed her answer, she was clinging to his arm as he made to pull away from her. “No Simeon, please don't let me go. Please. He is going to kill me if I go back to him. Please.”

“I am only going to get a washcloth for you and a change of clothes. We are going to get you out of here. We have been in contact with Solomon and had been trying to come up with a plan to get you out.”

Harlow didn’t fully hear him, her mind was racing, all she managed to hear was “Solomon'' and “get you out.” She accepted the washcloth and the change of clothes slipping on a pair of grey sweatpants, she could only assume he had gotten some time in the human realm. Then quickly put on the black undershirt he had given her. She quickly redid her bun and turned to him and said “Ok, let's go meet Solomon.”

Simeon just blinked at her, he wasn't sure how she had changed so quickly all while keeping the nightgown on until she was fully changed into the other clothes. She looked like herself, except her eyes were wide with fear, her pupils were dilated and he could only assume it was from whatever adrenalin was pumping through her at this moment. “Simeon, take me to Solomon.” She said drawing his attention back to the conversation. “Ah, right, Luke is working on getting in contact with him. Did you not hear me.” 

Blinking at him, Harlow finally registered what he was saying. “I can't wait, we need to leave this building… now. If he finds me, I don’t know what he’ll do. I cant even fight back with this stupid thing on my wrist. I can't go back there. He is already starving me and he threatened to-”. She was frantic walking in circles. Simeon reached out and took her by the arms. He used his magic to send a warm calming sensation through her body. “Hey, Harlow.” He said softly, drawing her eyes to his. “Yeah?” She asked, after taking a long deep breath. “We aren’t going to let him take you back. Not this time.” 

Luke finally hung up his call. “Solomon will be at the gate in 15min.” The color had drained from his face and he was looking at the ground. Harlow broke free of Simeon and went over to him. He was about a foot shorter than her, she brought him gently into a hug. “Hey kid, why are you looking down?” He reached his arms around her waist and let out a shaking breath. Harlow pulled away from him and tilted his chin to make him look at her. Tears were streaming down his face, “I am sorry that I didn't do more sooner. I am sorry I ever even looked up to Michael. Seeing the way he has treated you-” He swallowed hard and let out another shaking breath. 

Harlow’s heart broke for him, she knew that he had looked up to Michael but it was probably a good thing he was seeing the damage that his idol could cause. Even more that he was recognizing the behavior as unacceptable. Harlow was aware that Luke was much older than her but he was still so childlike that she had a hard time not acting like an older sister to him. She hugged him tighter and said “It’s not your fault. You have done nothing wrong. You are actively trying to help me get out of here. You checked on me and my wellbeing. Luke you have done so much for me.”

He hugged her tightly back. Then he pulled away from her. “You and Simeon had better get going. Once Raphael realizes you're not in his office he will come looking. I will do my best to keep them distracted.”

~

Once he had gotten hold of himself Michael flung himself out of the room he was keeping Harlow in. She would pay for stabbing him. He would put her in the dungeons of the palace and limit food and water. If she wouldn’t love him of her own accord he would figure out a way to force her to. He had done it before, he could do it again. He had never meant to fall in love with her but he had and he would not let that go. 

He rounded a corner and ran straight into Raphael and Uriel. Raphael’s eyes were frigid and nothing but disgust showed in them. Michael knew, he knew then that Harlow had somehow found Raphael and told him what had happened. Uriel had an equally disgusted look on his face, but his eyes were full of conflict. Michael knew Uriel was loyal to all of the ruling archangels but had been strictly under Michaels command since Uriel had gained his archangel status. 

Raphael walked right up to him and shoved him hard in his wounded shoulder. “I knew you were doing something terrible with that girl Michael. Your reports from the human world were always so wonderfully vague. I always thought it was just because things were uneventful. But she sent me every single memory of you. Every. Single. One.”

Raphael had backed Michael up to the wall, his fist clenching at the collar of Michaels shirt. “That threat you made… You won't be able to get within 100ft of her if I have anything to say about it.”

Michael grabbed Raphael's collar in return. Calm anger washed over him as he said “Do you really think you can stop me from getting to her?” Michael laughed. “Raphael, you have truly been the most naïve of all of us. And yet you have been the hardest to manipulate. Gabriel is fully on my side with this. Not that he has much of a choice.” 

Raphael pushed off of Michael, getting out of his grasp. What did he mean that Gabriel was fully on his side? Raphael held his ground as his brother approached him. Michaels hands were crackling with lightning. Uriel stood in place not knowing what to do. Michael hit Raphael with a bolt of lighting point blank in the stomach. Raphael flew back and hit the wall on the other side of the hallway. “Now tell me Raphael, where is my wife?” was all Michael said. Raphael had three choices, to concede, to fight, or to run.


	31. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Simeon, Luke, Uriel, and Raphael...
> 
> No beta

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Readers!
> 
> I am so sorry I took a long break... It was not intentional, there were some circumstances that came up that kept me from being able to focus on being creative. I fully intend on being back now and providing regular (once a week at least) updates. 
> 
> It is a short chapter but there is a lot to unpack. I hope you all enjoy it. I hope you all are staying happy, healthy and safe!

Harlow and Simeon raced to the gate to the human world that was hidden in the forest. When Harlow Saw a white haired man standing on the other side she broke into a sprint. She had never been so excited to see the Sorcerer in her entire life. Harlow launched herself at him and he caught her in his arms. Holding her tightly he said, “you look exhausted. Are you alright?”

Not fully waiting for an answer Harlow pulled away from him and said “We can catch up later, but right now we need to leave.” Simeon nodded in agreement. “I need to get back and make sure Luke is alright.” Harlow's heart sank. If Michael found out that he helped her get away, with how deranged Michael's thoughts had become, there was no telling what he would do to a young angel like Luke. Solomon made to say something in protest but Harlow grabbed his arm and said “I stabbed him, we need to go now.”   
Solomon planted his feet in the ground he felt the tug on his arm but was too stunned to move. “You did what?” She pulled on his arm a little bit harder biting her lip to keep from screaming at him. Sternly Harlow said, “If he finds me there is no telling what he will do, not only to me, but to you as well. I will tell you the full story later but we have to go. Now.” Solomon so the look of panic in her eyes, she was pleading with him to move. He relaxed his shoulders a bit and sighed. “Fine, but as soon as we get to the hotel you have to tell me everything. The Sorcerers Guild is going to have to know what they are up against.”

Harlow looked at him in confusion, she had questions of her own now, but she knew it wasn't the time. Simeon placed an arm around her shoulder and pulled her into a tight hug. Placing a gentle kiss on the top of her head he whispered, “Once you get your powers back, come find us. Once this is over, once you win, I’d gladly call you my leader.” Harlow hugged him back tightly. There was a strange finality in his words and her heart shattered. 

Solomon took her arms and pulled her to his chest and guided her back into the human realm. Harlow turned back to Simeon with tears in her eyes and said “I will end this, Simeon. I will find you and Luke and I will not stop looking until I find you.” Solomon's grip moved from her shoulders to her waist, casting a silent spell, Harlow watched Simeon disappear. 

~

Luke heard the commotion in the hallway. There was yelling and glass breaking as the two angels fought. He had thought to make his way to his uncle's office but when he heard the scuffle he pressed his back firmly against the wall around the corner and sank to the floor. How had this happened? How could the one being he had admired most be so cruel? Though Luke had only seen her a handful of times the circles under her eyes got darker and it seemed that there were a number of new small bruises that peppered her arms each time he caught a glimpse of her. Tears streamed down his face as one of the archangels was hurled into the wall caddy corner to him. 

This was not good, this was so not good! Luke’s eyes widened as he saw his uncle struggle to get up. He had not shifted into his full angel form, Luke knew he had tried to keep the piece and only struck back because he had to. Uriel rushed over to Raphael and tried to help him to his feet. However, as soon as he reached his side to help, an emotionless, monotone voice that said “Do not help him. He has disgraced the Celestial realm by directly disobeying orders. He has interfered with plans to keep the Celestial and Human realms safe from the demons and should be charged with high treason.”

Michael came into Luke's view but none of them saw him. He pressed himself harder into the wall trying to make himself invisible. He clamped his hands over his mouth to keep from gasping as Michael roughly turned Raphael onto his back. Uriel's eyes had gone wide as he watched what was happening. Seeing the two fight was bad enough but being ordered to not help was even worse. 

Michael observed his partially unconscious co leader sprawled in front of him. He thought for a long moment before saying to Uriel, “Force his shift.”

“What?” Uriel said, taken aback.

“Force his shift. You know the punishment for treason.” Michael said. He surrounded himself in blue lighting, triggering his full angelic form. It was then Uriel realized why Michael was requesting such a thing. He was planning on taking Raphael's wings. 

Luke saw disgust flashed across Uriel's face, and it quickly turned into anger. Luke realized then what was going to happen. He needed to leave, needed to find Simeon and Gabriel. He stood on shaking legs and slowly inched his way down the hall. In the same moment Luke knocked over a table that had been pushed up against the wall for decoration, Uriel said “No”. The one simple word was enough to keep Michaels attention on him. Uriel had spotted Luke the second he had stood from the ground. He would do anything to help him escape this, allow him to not be a witness to what was about to happen. 

Michael's eyes were like molten pools of deep blue water. Anger, nothing but anger at Uriel's defiance shone in them. Quietly, Michael asked “Did you just say… no?” Uriel watched Luke turn a corner, satisfied that he was no longer there, Uriel shifted, exposing his own wings his halo and he drew on his own powers of judgement and redemption, that manifested itself in the form of a glowing white broadsword. “This has gone far enough. My answer is no.”

Michael gnashed his teeth and snarled “Fine, it looks like I will be taking your wings as well.”

~

Satan and Beel stood on the beach. They had taken row boats out into the open ocean and did their best to find survivors. Out of the entire fleet, 10 large ships, they were only able to find 15 survivors. Levi was not included in that, yes he had made it out alive, and was recovering but he had been badly injured. It was clear he had fought like hell, but his battle wasn’t over yet.

“We are exposed now.” Satan said, his mind working. Strategizing was his strong suit, but without the navy, he could see no way of winning this. Not without help. Help they did not have, and help that would not come. He bent down and picked up a piece of wood from the wreckage and hurled it as hard as he could back into the ocean. Then he did it again, this time yelling as he threw it. Then again, and again until he was screaming. 

Beel said nothing, he just stood there with his hands in his pockets letting his brother let off steam. Soon the screams turned into sobs and Satan fell to his knees in the sand. Beel quietly sat down next to him. “He took her from us, right under our noses, and there was nothing I could do about it.” Satan said slamming his fist down. Beel understood how he was feeling, he had been there too. When they had awakened to find her gone, a piece of him had gone with her. Leaving a hollow hungry pit in his stomach. Sure he was hungry all of the time, but this, this was a different kind of hunger, a longing for something that should have always been there in the first place. 

Satan dug his hands into the sand and let out another scream into the air, and then collapsed on to his beck. They sat in silence for just a little while longer, until Beel said “She will come back to us. I know she will.” Satan sighed. “I hope so. I hope Solomon has been able to at least get in contact with her.” 

~

Harlow sat in the small hotel room, they had made their way from Selva di Malano, a forest in Italy, to Rome to Cyprus over the course of the last 3 days. Apparently the gates to the Devildom and the Celestial realm were scattered across Europe and the Middle East. 

Their journey had been a long one mostly because Harlow was having a hard time sleeping, eating, and being left alone even for the shortest amount of time. Their first night in Rome, Harlow had not let Solomon leave her side. Hell she had not let go of him in fear that he would vanish right in front of her. He had even held her while she slept, he discovered that if he did she wouldn't thrash around as much from the nightmares. 

However it was the beginning of day 4 and they were exhausted, especially Solomon. Solomon’s powers were strong but they had been strained with carrying the two of them. If it weren't for the damn bracelet she would have no problem getting around, she was sure.   
They decided that taking a small break before heading to Mersin, Turkey was a good idea. Mersin was where the crossing to Devildom would be, well at least the closest gate to Lucifer and Diavolo would be. 

Solomon had let her be so that she could rest some, though she wouldn't call it rest, she checked the lock on the door at every creak the room made. He had been acting strangely ever since they had landed in Cyprus. He had received a message and had instantly gotten her settled in, and then promptly left. She nearly jumped out of her shoes when the door latch opened. Solomon entered first closely followed by none other than Simeon, Luke, Uriel and Raphael.


	32. Chapter 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This whole situation is fucked up. 
> 
> I don't really know what to say other than that.
> 
> No beta.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers!
> 
> I really hope you all are staying warm. We are supposed to get 10" of snow at my home. It is nights like this that I am so so glad we have a wood burning fireplace. 
> 
> I thank you all for sticking with me. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and hopefully I can keep updating as much as my brain lets me. 
> 
> Stay happy, healthy, and safe out there.

Simeon was supporting Raphael and Uriel. Luke’s face was as white as a ghost. Raphael’s eyes were barely open and Uriel sagged at Simeon's side. Harlow stood from the bed and hurried over to Simeon. Lifting the arm Raphael did not have placed over Simeon, she did her best to take his weight from her friend. She stumbled under his weight. He was lean but he was nearly a foot taller than her and had easily 100lbs on her. Simeon though sighed at the relief, like he had been holding him for a very long time. Fumbling with Raphael, Harlow got him into the bed she was sitting on. Simeon and Solomon did the same with Uriel. 

It was clear the two archangels were injured, though Harlow could not see where. Harlow's mouth formed a grim line before she turned to her friends from Purgatory Hall. “What happened?”

Her mind was working over time. The last time she had seen any of them, they were the perfect example of health. Luke sank to the floor at the foot of his uncle's bed and Simeon walked to the window, not meeting her eyes as he followed his movements. There was a long, loaded pause before Simeon said, voice thick with emotion, “We barely made it out. Gabriel is dead. Michael has taken over the Celestial realm.”

Harlow noted how the tears had not stopped falling from Luke's eyes. Simeon did his best to hide his own and Solomon just stood by the door in stunned silence. Harlow felt something drop to the pit of her stomach. “What do you mean? Gabriel can’t be dead. That isn't possible is it? What about Azrael? What about Zerachiel, Raziel, Camael and Raguel?” Harlow did her best to remember the names of some of the other archangels she had heard in her time in the Celestial realm. “Surly they could not have let this happen.” Simeon spoke then but did not turn to look at any of them. “The day you escaped, Gabriel was found dead. His wings being taken must have been what killed him. As for the rest, what I could gather is that they were being held captive, or they are in on it. There was not much time for us to escape.”

Harlow swallowed hard. “How did you manage to get out of there?” She noticed then that Luke started sobbing harder, Simeon’s fists clenched and his jaw tightened. It broke her to see them this way, especially Luke. He had done nothing to deserve any of this. Harlow sat down next to him and pulled him into a tight hug. She felt his arm reach around her and there he clung to her. 

For a long moment no one spoke. The angels that had been eased into the two twin sized bed’s breathing became deep. When he was sure they were asleep Simeon spoke, “Luke ran to find me, and in the process he passed the open door to the office and saw him slumped over the desk. A few of Michaels men were surrounding him, wings in hand. It was shortly after that that I found him huddled in a corner nearby. It took me a while to get him to lead me to where we found Uriel and Raphael.” He stopped and closed his eyes as if trying to remember the events of the day. “When we got there Raphael was sprawled on the ground and Michael was removing Uriel’s second wing. Luke and I used our combined powers to send a stunning charm over the three of them. It would not have worked if Michael had been paying attention but he had no idea we were there. We got Uriel and Raphael out only a few hours after you left. We spent 2 days in Rome though…” Simeon swallowed hard. “But I had to finish removing…”

Harlow knew what he was going to say, she cut him off. “I am just glad you all are here and not there. Simeon, some sit with us, please?” She reached out to him. A silent plea to him. It was all she could do right now. This was all going to absolute shit way way too quickly.. She had thought that Gabriel was on Michael's side, but if he was Michael's men would not have killed him. She had always thought that even though the angels were her friends they would choose the Celestial realm over the human one and devildom, but here they were, choosing the latter 2 over their own home. Simeon’s shoulders slumped and he came to sit next to her. He also wrapped his arms around her. Then he buried his face in the crook of the neck. Harlow began stroking his hair when she felt warm liquid hitting her shoulder. 

~

Michaels hair hung in his face. 1.5 sets of angels' wings lay before him in the great hall of the Celestial realm’s palace. Also before him stood the other archangels, all in chains, all of whom he was ready to relieve of their wings. Leaning back in the chair he sat in. He gestured to the wings “The way i see this, you have 2 options. You can fight with me, and bring the 3 realms under my control or you can fight against me and lose your wings and possibly your life. 

It was true that Gabriel had been on his side for the most part. It wasn't until Harlow shared her memory of him towering over her with Raphael, who had of course shared it with Gabriel, that Gabriel began to doubt Michael. All but two of the angels kneeled before him. Ariel and Camael. The only two female archangels had been against the situation with Harlow since the beginning. It did nothing to quell his range though. Lightning danced at his fingertips. “Sisters, why do you not bow?” 

Camael spoke first, “She is the child of lilith, our sister, she belongs to no one.”

Ariel nodded in agreement “You trying to own her will only bring your own demise.”

Then they spoke in unison “Lilith will see to it that no one angle or demon can control the three worlds. Especially not you or Lucifer, as you are two heads to the same coin.”

He sent a bolt of lightning through them. Screaming, they both fell to their knees. Ariel heaved at the pain. Camael only sat up tall. Looking him dead in the eyes she said “ you are your own undoing Michael.”

~

Solomon and Harlow rubbed at their faces as they got two more rooms at the inn they were staying. Harlow carried a sleeping Luke and Solomon escorted a half asleep Simeon to one. Once they were sure that they would stay asleep and that their injured acquaintances were settled in, both had not shown any interest in waking, Solomon and Harlow retreated to their own room. 

The room only had one bed in it. Solomon did not say anything as Harlow prepped for bed. It wasn't like they were not sharing a bed, in the most innocent way, every night any way. She finally crawled into bed. She felt the bed shift next to her as Solomon laid down. She turned to face him. “This entire thing is so fucked up.” She said quietly as she began to cry. “Michael, I cant believe he could do something like this to people he claims to love.” 

It had been a very long time since Solomon had shared a bed with a woman. It had even been a longer time since he shared a bed with a woman who had any sort of PTSD like Harlow had. But Harlow had reminded him so much of his most beloved wife Naamah. He couldn't help but pull her in for a hug. It had been ages since he had been used to fighting off nightmares but for Harlow and Naamah, he would do just that. He did his best to pick his words carefully. “That is because what he feels is not love Harlow. He is only in this for whatever power he can gain.” 

Harlow pressed her head to his chest. “This is so fucked up. If you all had never found me, all of this would have been so much easier. None of this would have happened. I wouldn’t be such a problem and you all could be living in peace. I am so sorry Solomon.” Her words were not making any sense. 

“You are by far one of the most fascinating women I have ever met Harlow. There is no need to apologize for any of this. I have to say that this last year has been one of the most exciting I have had in almost 3 centuries.” He laughed to himself then and said “I was heavily involved in the Jacobite rebellion in the 1740’s but that is the last bit of excitement I have had.” Harlow pulled back and looked at him… “That is probably one of the most random things I have ever heard in my life.” She supposed that when you lived as long as he had, you had several stories that did not make sense. He giggled at her reaction and pulled her back to him, sending a calming and warming spell down her body. “Once this war between realms is over, I will give you an in depth explanation.”

Harlow let out a big yawn. She rolled over to the side facing away from him and said, “Deal, you owe me a story.” Then she added softly, like she had done every night, “Thank you for being here, thank you for protecting me, thank you for helping me sleep.” It was like a prayer and it resonated with him. It wasn’t until he was sure that she was fully asleep that he whispered back to her, “you are welcome, so very welcome my dove. Please do not ever think you are a burden to us. Without you there is no us.”

Planting a small kiss on her forehead he rose from bed to make a call. He needed to be sure that the Sorcerers were ready to aid how they could with this war and he also needed Lucifer or Diavolo to answer their phones. He had not been able to get a hold of them since he had obtained Harlow. He desperately needed them to be at the gate to take her and the angels.


	33. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back to Devildom.
> 
> No beta

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Readers!
> 
> I hope you all are doing well. I am going to try and get this story wrapped up in the next 5-10 chapters. So I am hoping that life can allow me to write longer chapters and that you all keep reading and enjoying it until the end.
> 
> I have another story that is begging to be written for this fandom right now, and its smutty... and Diavolo heavy because I love him. (I have never written smut before so we will see how it goes.)
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all are staying happy, healthy, and safe.

Belphegor got a message from one of his shadows, one he had put in place while visiting Harlow in her dreams. These shadows sent him messages in the form of visions. He saw the fight with Michael and Raphael. He saw Michael's ilk take Gabriel's wings, ultimately killing him. He also saw the remaining archangels chained up and kneeling before Michael. His respect grew for the female angels who did their best to resist. The shadow also sent a vision of Simeon, Uriel, Raphael and Luke escaping to the human world. There was no sign of Harlow though, and he hoped that was a good thing. 

Being the embodiment of sloth, and one his main powers being able to cause nightmares for his victims, he was not unused to seeing disturbing things. However, this made his hands sweat and stomach turn. It was one of the most horrifying sights he had seen since the war when they lost Lilith. He hoped Harlow had not seen Gabriel have his wings taken or have to watch as Michael attempted to take Uriel's. Opening his eyes he sat up with a start. “Damn it.” Belphegor thought to himself. This was going to be an interesting conversation to have with Lucifer and Diavolo. Michael had effectively taken over the Celestial realm and his shadows had no idea where Harlow was. 

He had been charged with looking after Leviathan but his brother slept soundly. He left the tent and made his way to the tent he knew they were in. He was surprised to see Mammon in the tent with them. He was holding something that looked like a spear but it had been modified, glowing jewels lined the staff. “This one can directly target and counter any Celestial attack. Once it has locked into its target until it hits, or collides with something of the same energy.” Diavolo’s eyes widened, “So it's an attack that can't be avoided.”

“Yes, but I have made it so that there are settings. One can shoot to kill or one can set it to stun. I know we don’t want to kill any more angels than we have to. But the blasts are limited, so I have fashioned a spear tip so it can continue to be used throughout the battles.”

“Is there a way to have these blasts last for longer periods of time?” Lucifer asked.

“I am working on that. Asmo and Beel are testing some of the prototypes as we speak.”

Belphegor observed them for a moment before he cleared his throat. The three of them turned to look at him. Lucifer’s eyes darkened when they took in the grave look on his face, “What is it? Is Leviathan alright?” Belphegor nodded. 

“He is fine, sleeping. But I think you all are going to want to sit down for what I am about to tell you. I got news from one of my shadows.” Diavolo crossed his arms and mammon stiffened. After a few moments they all sat and Belphegor told him of what he had seen. 

“Michael was in the middle of sawing off one of Uriel’s wings when there was a blast of power from Simeon and Luke, somehow those two were able to get Uriel and Raphael out. They have made it to the human world through the gate in Italy.”

“Lucifer, has Satan get a hold of Simeon, see if they need help or assistance.” Diavolo said before asking, “Harlow, anything about her and her whereabouts?”

It was in that moment when Mammon's DDD started going off. 

~

Solomon walked on the beach that their hotel overlooked. He had gotten in touch with the sorcerers guild and was able to talk them into helping with the upcoming fight. He had also managed to get in contact with some of the witches covens he had ties with, who were also willing to help. Though he was sure some of them were in it to get closer to Satan or make sure Mammon made good on a deal. 

Lucifer's DDD went straight to voicemail and so did Diavolo’s. Solomon wasn't sure who he should try to contact, Barb was probably busy attending to the injured, Asmo would be too much to handle right now. Their pact and friendship was strong, but sometimes, mainly in serious situations, Asmo was absolutely not the demon you wanted to contact. Beel and Satan's phones also went straight to voicemail. Solomon highly doubted that Belphi was awake and knew Levi was not, so that left Mammon. 

“Solomon, what’s up”

“Oh thank the gods you picked up. Are you with Lucifer and Diavolo? I have been trying to get in contact with them for days.”

“We are here Solomon, what is happening? Belphegor’s shadows told us much of what has happened in the Celestial realm but had no information on Harlow.” Diavolo’s voice came through the phone

“I have her… But Simeon, Luke, Uriel and Raphael have joined us as well. Uriel and Raphael are in really bad shape.”

“Where are you?” Lucifer asked. 

“Cyprus, we are heading to the gate to Devildom in Mersin. They are all resting now, but I should have enough power in the morning to get everyone to the gate in the morning.”

“We will see you there.” Lucifer, Diavolo and Mammon said in unison before there was a *click* and the line went dead. Solomon let out a sigh, it felt like the weight of the last few days had been lifted off of his shoulders. Soon Harlow would be back in devildom, where it was safe for her. And then they could focus on taking Michael down. 

~ 

Michaels was furious that she had somehow managed to get away. As soon as she entered Devildom, Lucifer would take off the ring of light and she would have full access to her powers again. Powers that he would not admit scared him. That day in the summit meeting, he had not let it show but when she had pushed him back into the chair, it was so forceful that he couldn’t breath for a moment. And the way her markings glowed? Well that was the divine power making itself known, and for it to glow to that extent, not even he had that much power. Without the ring of light, he would not be able to control her. 

He sat back and looked at the wings now hanging above his fire place like a prized 12 point buck. The other archangels aside from Ariel and Camael submitted to him. They were currently being held in the prison below the palace. He had set his best men on them to try and get them to break. Swirling his glass, amber liquid almost going over the rim, he closed his eyes and focused on the bond Harlow and himself shared. He could feel the pulse of her even breath, ah, so she was sleeping.

~

Harlow woke up with a pounding headache. She felt like someone had been trying to root around in her brain while she slept. The one power the ring of light could not diminish was her ability to keep her thoughts safe. Solomon was hunched over at the table in their room. It was very early morning and she knew that today would be the day that hopefully, she would see her demons again, that she would get this damned bracelet off and she would be able to bring down Michael and hopefully restore things to normal. Though deep down she knew that would never happen. 

She got up and brushed the hair out of Solomon's face to wake him up. “Wake up its morning and we have to get ready to go. His eyes opened and he nodded, but said nothing else. She readied herself and then went and woke up Luke and Simeon. They both looked like they had gotten sleep, but it had not been restful. Then she checked on the other two, Raphael was awake, but Uriel was not. Raphael sat with his head in his hands and she crossed to sit next to him on the bed. She put an arm around his shoulder and he put a hand on her knee.

“He won’t wake up.” Raphael said after a very long moment of silence. “He is still breathing though.” Harlow noted. Yes she was so very angry at Uriel but she still cared for him and wanted him to live as much as the rest of them. “What if he doesn’t wake up? It will be all my fault.” He said voice breaking. 

She squeezed him tighter, “It isn't your fault, but we can talk about this later. Right now we have to go.” He took in a deep breath and nodded. 

They met on the beach, no one was around yet. “I can carry 2 at a time.” Solomon said. “Raphael, I will take you and Uriel fist, then Luke and Harlow and then you Simeon.” And with that he was soaring through the air with the groups he had laid out. Once all of them were there they made it to Kizkalesi Castle. Walking through a side entry they found themselves the grand entry of the Demon Lords palace. 

It wasn't long before Harlow was lifted into someone's arms and crushed to their chest. Then violently, she was tugged away from the stone chest she had been forcefully pressed against. “Hey Beel! That isn't fair, Harlow is my human and I should have gotten the first hug.” She was set back on her feet and then felt another set of arms wrap around her. “Oh shut up Mammon, we all know Harlow missed me the most.” Asmo said as he clung to her tightly, “Isn’t that right darling?” Then yet another set of arms pulled her away and there was Satan who held her at arms length and said simply, “You look like you have lost some weight, and you look tired. What did that bastard do to you?” She saw Beel nod before he said, “She has always been easy to pick up but she was extra easy today.”

The brothers were all too focused on her that they completely forgot about the others in the room. Harlow finally got their attention by yelling “Stop!". They all looked at her and then took in the rest of her companions. “We need to get Uriel medical attention right away, where are Diavolo and Lucifer?” She had not been greeted by them yet, or Belphegor or Levi. 

The brothers took a moment to register that there were 4 tattered angels standing in front of them before stepping into action to help. Beel took Uriel from Raphael, and Mammon took Luke under his arm pulling out a set of cards “Do you want to see a magic trick? 30 grim if you can guess how i do it.” Satan pulled Simeon aside in an attempt to get an understanding of what had happened. 

Asmo though, his eyes locked on Raphael, Raphael’s eyes sparked with mischief when he made eye contact. His voice was dripping with glee as Raphael said, “Well hello Asmodeus, tell me, how have the parties been in the human world these days?” Whatever color had been in Asmo’s face was now gone. “Parties? No, I wouldn’t know. I haven’t been to any parties in the human realm lately.” Harlow knew that was a lie but this interaction was borderline hysterical. She couldn't help but laugh, which in turn ruined the moment they both shifted their attention back to her. “It isn’t very funny Harlow! I had to work in the hot sun at spear point for 3 weeks. My skin was such a mess afterwards it took me going to the spa once a week for 3 months to get it back to normal.” Asmo huffed at her before walking away. 

Beel came back then and said, “ Raphael, Our medics are not familiar with these kinds of injuries, is there any way you can help them with Uriel?” Agreeing to help they left Harlow standing alone in the great hall. Taking in a deep breath she closed her eyes and thought how grateful she was to be home.


End file.
